The Reason I Breathe
by detective-sweetheart
Summary: I've spent most of my life trying to uphold the law, he told her, and then this happens, and I'm thrown for a loop, because I'm not exactly sure what to do anymore.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: The follow-up to Involuntary Motion, as promised...I know I left you all hanging at the end of the last one, but that was only so this one could happen. In any case, TOS isn't mine, but anyone you haven't heard of is. Two points if you can catch the reference to CI. **

* * *

It rained. She knew this, because she was wide awake, and she was staring at the ceiling. He'd gotten up at some point and had left; this much she knew, because she had become cold all of a sudden, and when she'd finally opened her eyes, he wasn't there. But she knew that he was still in the apartment. The music playing faintly from the main room told her as much.

Rolling over onto her side, Anna looked at the clock and sighed. Two o'clock in the morning. The red digits glaring back at her were unmistakable. Pushing tousled hair back out of her eyes, she reached for the clip she'd taken out hours earlier, and used it to pull her hair back and up once more, before pushing the covers away, and tugging on the button-down shirt that had been discarded around the same time as her clip. It went to her knees. She thought wryly as she got up that it looked almost like a dress on her. Blinking, she looked once more at the clock, and walked out to the main room.

"You should be asleep."

The voice wasn't unexpected. She was used to hearing it. Over the past few days, it had been the same. He would get up, leave the room, sit, and play music. And when she got up, he would tell her that she should be asleep.

"So should you," she pointed out, deciding to ignore him this time, and she came to sit beside him. "Jack, you can't keep doing this to yourself."

He looked away from her. "You really should be asleep, Anna," he said, again, but she continued to ignore this.

"I'm not coming to bed until you do," she told him. "This isn't good for either of us, to sit and dwell…"

"Is that what I'm doing? Dwelling?" The words came more harshly than he'd meant them to, but he wasn't at the point where he cared. "Do you not understand what's going on here?"  
"I do," said Anna, quietly, "Believe me, Jack, I do. But this isn't going to help you any."

"It's not going to bring her back, is that what you're saying?"

Silence. The music had cut off, suddenly, abruptly, and now there was nothing but the two of them, and the sound of their breathing. After a long moment, Anna shook her had.

"No," she said. "No, that's not what I'm saying, at all. We still have a chance. People are still looking. They haven't given up yet."

"But they want to." The harsh note had disappeared, and had been replaced by one of an infinite sadness that made Anna bite her lip as Jack went on. "It's been almost a month. Most people…they give up after a while."  
"Have you?"

She wondered at the look he gave her whether it was the wrong thing to ask or not, but after a while, he shook his head.

"I can't," he admitted, without looking at her. "I can't, Anna, because if I do, it means that…that there isn't any hope left."

She hated the fact that he sounded so broken, and that there was nothing she could really do about it. "You can't think of it that way," she told him softly, "It'll only make things worse."

"How much worse can things possibly get?" Jack asked, almost incredulously. "This whole damn thing is just…oh, hell, I don't know what it is."

Two weeks had gone by since he'd been cleared in four murders. Tara Galinet was still awaiting trial. Connie seemed determined to put it off as long as the District Attorney's Office could possibly get away with. Branch had seen fit to place one of the other EADA's over the case, with Connie sitting second chair again. The EADA he'd chosen, another woman by the name of Amanda Fellowes, held the same mindset that her new second chair did.

"We'll figure it out," said Anna, after a long moment of silence. "It might take a while, but…"

"Your optimism will never fail to amaze me," said Jack, shaking his head. "Anna, you know as well as I do that the first 48 hours…"  
Anna shook her head, stubbornly. "Not this time," she told him. "It'll be different this time."

"Can you see into the future now?" Jack asked, mildly, giving her a faintly amused look as he reached for the remote and pressed play. Anna shook her head at him, again.

"No," she said. "I'm just…trying to keep an open mind about all of this, even though I know I'd prefer it to turn out one way rather than the other."

"Such a lawyer," said Jack. "Always with the delicate wording."  
Anna snorted, relieved that he could find something to poke at her for, despite the note this conversation had taken. "Look who's talking."  
But no answer came. When she looked at him, she was even more relieved to see that in the moments between his remark and her answer, he had fallen asleep.

* * *

The sunlight woke her up. It wouldn't have bothered her much except for the fact that somehow, she had fallen asleep sitting up, with Jack's head in her lap, and now she had the feeling that the day wasn't going to be a particularly good one. Anna yawned and rubbed the back of her neck as she slid from the couch, slowly, so as not to wake him up, and went in search of her cell phone, which had started ringing.

"It's a good thing you're not due in court today, Anna," said Trevor's voice as soon as she flipped it open.

"Forgive me for having a minor crisis of faith to deal with last night," Anna said dryly, careful to keep her voice quiet. "What time is it? I haven't had time to look at a clock."

"Ten o'clock on the dot," came the reply. Anna made a face at the mirror as she stepped into the bathroom.

"Great," she said, mock-seriously, "You're not going to fire me, are you?"  
"If I fire you, I'm screwed. You're the other half of the firm now, remember?"

She did, and all too well. "Thanks a lot, Trevor," she said mildly, "Now I'm not buying you coffee this morning."

"My heart is breaking," he replied, laughing. "Odds are you'll forget that little threat by the time you reach our side of town."

"Don't test me, Langan." Anna reached into the shower and turned the water on. "I'll be into work as soon as I can, considering traffic and the like. See you then."  
And she hung up, before he could say anything else. Ten o'clock…no time to take a run out to Staten Island. She'd have to make do with what she had here. Her cell phone started to ring again, but this time, she let it ring and stepped into the shower.

When she got out again, Jack was still asleep, and there was a new voicemail. She wandered into the kitchen and flipped the phone open, dialing a number, inputting her code, and listening. The message was from Connie.

_"Fallon's looking for a deal. Fellowes told her no dice, but we might not have a choice soon. She hasn't confessed, and all the evidence still technically points to Jack, despite all Kelly told us. Call me when you get this." _

Anna frowned, flipped the phone shut, and flipped it open again, hitting one of the numbers she'd put on speed dial at the beginning of the last round. Connie answered on the second ring.

"I hear someone's looking for a deal," Anna said by way of greeting, fastening her watch around her wrist. "Is Fellowes still playing hardball?"  
"Branch won't let her allow Galinet to plead out," Connie replied. "I think he's as determined as we are to see this taken to trial, so everyone can see her for what she is."  
"You'd best watch your step; the last thing we need right now is a lawsuit," said Anna. On the other side of the line, Connie looked at her phone and sighed.

"I can barely hear you," she said, "Is something wrong with your phone?"  
Anna peered out into the main room and sighed. It didn't look as if anything was going to wake Jack up anytime soon. "No, it's not the phone," she replied. "Jack's asleep, I'd rather not wake him up."

"I see," said Connie, and then, "Fellowes is trying to keep the trial date from coming before the police can find Rebecca, but it doesn't look good so far. Fallon's going to keep pushing."  
"I would expect nothing less," said Anna, dryly, unable to keep a note of sarcasm out of her voice. "It just goes from one extreme to the next in this case, doesn't it?"  
"Would that I could change things so it didn't have to be this way," Connie said, and a low sigh escaped her before she went on. "If it gets to that point…"  
"You know he isn't going to come," Anna said, quietly, "Connie, he's having a hard enough time dealing with this as it is…he won't want to listen to it."

"I was going to ask if you'd come, honestly," said Connie. "I know that Kelly won't do it. I was thinking you would be able to…represent them both, unofficially."  
"Have you spoken to Kelly at all?" Anna asked, reaching for a sheet of paper and a pen, so that she could leave a note. Connie nodded, and then remembered that the other woman could not see her.

"I have," she said. "That's how I know she won't come if it gets to the point where Fallon gets her way. She said she would be all right with it. I suppose I can assume that Jack would be al right with it, too."  
"I'll have to talk to him about it," said Anna, "I'll let you know if and when I get an answer. I'll be at the office today if you need me."

* * *

Amanda Fellowes was not amused. It seemed as if the morning had just begun, and already, Erin Fallon's little messengers were arriving, in and out, and it was getting on her nerves.

"I don't see how you dealt with it the first time around," she said, to Connie. "Flynn, and then Monahan, and then Flynn again…the messages had to get annoying."

"There weren't many messages," said Connie, "I think that we were all secretly on the same sheet of music, but we just couldn't let it appear that way, you know?"  
Amanda offered up a faint smile, and nodded. "Yeah, I know," she said. "Suppose you could say that the thin blue lines don't only apply to the police department."

She fell silent after that remark, and Connie knew why, but said nothing. It wasn't too long ago that the Major Case Squad had had something like this happen to one of their own. It had been an interesting point in time, to say the least; Amanda had nearly resigned her position as EADA of the white collar crimes bureau, but had been talked out of it at the last moment, by none other than the senior ADA for the Major Crimes bureau.

"Yeah," said Connie finally, "I suppose we could say that." She motioned to one of the cups of coffee she held. "Figured we might as well get some sort of fake energy boost."

Amanda laughed and took one of the cups from her. "I owe you one," she said. "Thanks. This completely slipped my mind."  
"Can't say I blame you." Connie took a sip from her own cup and went on. "I spoke to Anna Flynn this morning."

"You told her that Fallon's pressing for a deal?" Amanda asked, and Connie nodded.

"Left her a message, she called me back. I also talked to Kelly Monahan. She says she won't come if it gets to the point where we're forced to offer a deal or face a lawsuit."

"And I suppose you couldn't get Flynn to say that McCoy would show up?" Amanda asked slowly. Connie shook her head.

"Anna says that she'll come and represent them both if it gets to that point. Kelly's informed me that she's all right with it; Anna told me she'll have to talk to Jack, but she's pretty sure he'll go along with it, too."  
Amanda nodded, almost as slowly as she'd spoken. "That's good," she said. "Nice to know some of us still have a fair amount of decency left after all this."  
That was definitely something, Connie thought, without saying anything. Holloway had been reassigned to a different bureau, and would no longer be working with them, much to her relief. It was just her, and Amanda now, which was a good thing, because Amanda was actually someone she could reasonably work with.

"Fallon's just irritated right now because no judge has an open calendar to start this trial out," she said finally. "You can hardly call that our fault, can you?"  
Amanda smirked. "I like the way you think," she said. "It's certainly not our fault that no one has an open calendar. I shouldn't say this, but Galinet can sit and stew for all I care."

"Suppose we could say this is one of those times when we're glad that Branch won't let us deal out," said Connie, and Amanda nodded.

"Definitely." She paused for a moment, and then went on. "How'd you do it?"  
Connie gave the older woman a startled look. "How did I do what?" she asked in reply.

"Handle this," said Amanda. "Dealing with Holloway, the press…everything. How'd you do it?"

Connie shrugged. "I don't know," she said. "I really don't. Suppose you could say that it was work driving me. I didn't really notice anything else, except for Holloway being a jerk."

Amanda laughed. "I hate press cases," she said, shaking her head. "But it looks like that's what this one is shaping up to be."

"I'm surprised it wasn't last time," said Connie, "I'm just hoping we can keep the press out of the courtroom this time around, too."  
"You think Fallon will try and fight to allow them?"  
"She might. Do you know her at all?"

"I've met her. She was my EADA once, before she decided to turn defense. I think it was after she and Jack split up."

"Ah, so she's the one who send Alyssa Goodwin after him."  
"Well, Kelly did, too, so I suppose that's the one thing the two of them ever agreed on. Erin and Kelly don't like each other much. Can't really blame them, but there you have it."  
Silence fell between the two women for a long moment, and then Amanda spoke again, looking at the clock as she did.

"Here goes nothing."


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: An update. Hopefully the next chapter will be up within the next few days. **

* * *

She had a partner. Of that, they were certain, because before they had taken her down to Central booking, she had told them. This, of course, had been before Erin Fallon could get her to quit digging herself further in than she already had. Now the only problem was finding out who this partner was, and where he as.

"She's still one up on us," Nina said, furiously, running a frustrated hand through her hair. "No matter what we do, she's always gonna be one up on us because she knows that we know nothing."  
"It ain't gonna help if you keep that attitude," said Ed, "There's gotta be something here somewhere. She never had a chance to clean out."  
"She could've cleaned out way before Monahan gave her up," Nina pointed out, "Just because all of her clothes and such are here doesn't mean that she left anything that could help us."  
Silence fell between the two detectives as they stood in the middle of the mostly abandoned brownstone home that belonged to 'Natalie Grant', otherwise known as Tara Galinet. Nina had a point, and Ed knew it, not that he wanted to admit it. Truth was, Tara had had plenty of chances to clear out before Kelly had given her up, and both of them knew it.

"So, we look," he said. "There's gotta be something somewhere. She can't have taken everything. No one's that perfect."

"If she was, then she wouldn't have dared take Rebecca while she was on the phone with her best friend," Nina said sarcastically. "Hell, if she was perfect, then she wouldn't have gotten caught, but she did."

"Yeah, after raising hell in the system," said Ed, shaking his head at her. "We've been through this place already. There's got to be somewhere else."

"Where? This is pretty much the only place we know about where she actually was. Her family claims they haven't seen her. We don't have enough to get a warrant proving otherwise."

"They've got to know something."

"She disappeared for six years. No one knew anything about her until this latest case came around to bite us all in the rear end. Now she's back. There's no way she got this place on her own."

"Ok, so we talk to the family. They can't deny she's guilty this time around. If they don't want to tell us anything…"

"Then what? We talk the lieutenant into letting us get Rubirosa to bootstrap a warrant? What makes you think that's gonna fly?"

"It's the only thing we've got right now."

"We could always take a look for hidden torture chambers in the basement, y'know."  
Ed shook his head. "That's not even funny," he said. "The possibility's always there."

"Well, it'd have to be hidden inside the walls somehow, then," said Nina dryly. "We didn't see anything the last time we were here."

"Either that, or she really doesn't have anything here, like we were thinking, and she has someplace else."

"That doesn't help us."

"No, it doesn't." They left the house, and blinked as the sunlight met their eyes. Ed went on. "We could always try talking to her again."

"And have Fallon threatening us with a lawsuit for harassment?" Nina gave her partner a skeptical look and shook her head. "I don't think so."

"She's not gonna have any grounds to threaten us with a lawsuit if we have a legitimate reason to be questioning her client."

"Good point. But I suggest we use it as a last resort. We've gotta be able to find something sooner or later."

"Yeah, and sooner or later, that ain't gonna be good enough."

* * *

"Anna?"

She was used to the office door opening and closing. It was something that she'd learned to pretty much ignore unless it happened to be of particular importance. Trevor, at the moment, was not, and so she continued on with what she was doing.

"What do you want?" she asked. "I have opening arguments to write, Trevor, I don't have time to sit here and chat with you."

"Yeah, I didn't think you would, so don't talk, just listen," said Trevor. Anna nodded, and he went on. "Word has it that McCoy's just resigned from the District Attorney's office."

Anna's head snapped up and she stared at him. "What did you say?" she demanded.

Trevor put up his hands in mock surrender. "I'm just telling you what I heard," he said. "I don't know if it's actually true or not."

"Well, who did you hear it from?" Anna asked, leaning back in her chair, stunned. Trevor sighed, and looked away from her.

"I heard it from Danielle," he admitted. "I don't know where she heard it from, I didn't ask."

"Suppose I ought to find out straight from the source," said Anna, sounding upset, "Damn it, this wasn't supposed to go this far…"

"Well, of course it wasn't, but that doesn't change the fact that it did, Anna, and you can hardly force him to stay."

"Then what the hell happened to the rumors saying Branch was on his way out?" Anna got up and started to pace the length of her office, shaking her head. "I could've sworn that rumor was the latest one."

"You haven't been listening," said Trevor. "Not that I can really blame you. Branch announced his intentions to run for District Attorney again when the elections come around."

"That's lovely," said Anna, sarcastically, "At least tell me he's managed to put someone decent over the Homicide bureau for now."

"Amanda Fellowes," said Trevor. "Last I heard, she's the one handling the Galinet trial."  
Anna nodded, slowly. "Amanda's good," she said, absently. "She'll be able to handle it, but…"

"You knew he wasn't going to be able to handle this case whether he stayed in or not," Trevor pointed out. Anna gave him a look.

"Yeah, I'm aware of that, but it doesn't change the fact that this case…well…." She trailed off, hesitant to say any more than she already had, but after a moment, she did. "He's not…dealing with it well."

"Of course not, Anna, that woman still has his child heaven only knows where and the police have no leads. Would you be handling it well?"  
Silence fell. There was only one answer to that question, and Trevor knew it, and so did Anna, so she gave a frustrated sigh and stopped pacing.

"No," she said, "I wouldn't be, but I'm not handling this well, either, and I've got a damn trial to run on top of it."

"Do you want me to take over?" Trevor asked. "I don't have anything on my calendar for a while now, and you really look like you could use a break."

Anna rolled her eyes. "I always look like I could use a break; you said it yourself," she remarked. "I don't know. I'd really like to keep myself busy and not think about any of this, but at the same time…"

"You don't really have a choice but to think about it; you're seeing him, for heaven's sake," said Trevor. "Really, Anna, let me take this case from you, and maybe I can find something less time-consuming for you to handle. Something you can work on from home."

Home. For the past couple of weeks, she'd been camped out at Jack's apartment, not wanting to leave him alone, since he refused to come out to Staten Island with her. If anything, she would be working from there.

"Are you sure?" she asked, finally. "I'm up against ADA Novak again, I don't think you really want to piss her off."

"I've dealt with Novak a lot more than you have, remember?" Trevor asked dryly. "I think I know how to handle her."  
"You'd better not piss her off again; I'd rather not deal with the fallout," said Anna. She glanced down at the files spread out across her desk and sighed. "I suppose I can let you have this."

"Ah, the fearless lawyer admits that she can't take on the world after all," said Trevor, a faint smile crossing his face as he spoke. "Anna, I promise you, if anything comes up, I will let you know, but I can't just sit here and watch you run yourself into the ground."

She shook her head at him. "You'd better not forget to fill me in on anything, you hear?" she asked. "I know you'll be in the courtroom when the Galinet trial begins."

"Will you be?"

The question stopped her in her tracks. She had begun pacing again without noticing it. Now she turned to face the other lawyer and shook her head.

"I doubt it," she admitted, quietly. "I don't know if I'll be able to sit in there, and I just…I get the feeling that Jack won't want to be there, either. I already know Kelly won't be."

"So that leaves Erin, Rubirosa and Fellowes. Lovely. I'll have to see if Danielle cares to accompany me."

"She probably will, but yeah, I'd ask. She seems as determined as the rest of us to keep herself busy and not think about it."

"Considering the circumstances, I'm not surprised."

* * *

"You know, there used to be a point in time where I could say that nothing would ever take you down."

He'd been sitting in an old familiar restaurant near the courthouse for about half an hour, waiting. Now, he rose to his feet and waited until Jamie sat before taking his place once more.

"There used to be a point in time where I wasn't afraid that someone would try to come after me," he said. "How have you been?"  
Jamie offered up a half-hearted smile. "Same as always," she said, and then, "You look tired, Jack."

"Can't say that I'm not," came the reply. "I think…a lot of things have changed over the past few weeks."

"That they have." There was silence between them for a long moment, and then, Jamie spoke again. "I heard you resigned."

He laughed. "Should've known that one would get around before the end of business," he said, and then, "I did."  
"But why?" The question came before Jamie cold really think about it, and before she could stop herself, she went on. "Isn't it just letting her win, despite being cleared?"

"I'm not sure." Jack trailed off for a long moment before going on. "I don't think it's resigning as much as it's taking a leave of absence."

"So, if the chance presented itself later on down the road, you would join the DA's office again?"

"You could say that."

"I could also say that it's just giving Tara Galinet what she wants. This is what she was aiming for."

"There are worse things that could happen. I still have a license to practice law. I haven't been disbarred."

"But you've just…given up. You can't tell me you don't want a hand in this case."

"Of course I do, but you know as well as I do that I wouldn't be able to handle it even if I stayed."

Silence fell between the two of them for a long moment, and then Jamie shook her head. "You know once the rumor reaches her, she's going to be impossible."

"Who? Galinet?" Jack asked, and when Jamie nodded, he sighed. "I know. But at the same time, I don't really care. There are a few issues I still need to work out, and if I stay with the office, I can't do that, because I'll be working all the time."

That definitely sounded familiar. Jamie sighed and leaned back slightly, before shaking her head. "Does Anna know about it?"

Jack gave her an amused look. "I'm sure if you know about it, then she does. I'll probably hear it later on."

"Can you really say that you'll be able to blame her for it?" Jamie asked, and he shook his head.

"No," he replied. "I can't. Honestly, I'd have preferred to be the one to tell her, but apparently, it's already all over, so I doubt I'm going to have the chance."

"So what are you going to do now that you're not working? Sit around your apartment all day?"

"I haven't really figured that out yet. I suppose Anna will find a way to keep me busy. She'll probably make me do her paperwork."

"I ought to tell her you said that." Jamie trailed off for a moment, and then went on. "Suppose you're still waiting for news?"

Jack nodded. "I am," he said. "We…haven't heard anything yet, but I'd like to think that it means there's still some sort of hope left."

Once again, there was silence between them, one that was broken only by the sounds of the place around them. What felt like forever passed by before Jamie spoke again.

"There's always hope somewhere."


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Short, I know, but I'm still working on it, I promise!**

* * *

It was cold. Almost too cold. She didn't know how long she'd been in this room. Had long ago lost track of how long she had been gone. It didn't seem to matter anymore anyway, Rebecca thought, as she sat there, on the bed, staring out the window, which, ironically enough, had bars on it. She doubted they were still in the city. She'd heard the man whose name she still did not know swearing what had to have been at least a few days ago, because he'd been on the phone, and apparently something had gone wrong.

And now she was stuck here, because whoever that woman had been, she was the key to getting out, and Rebecca knew it. The thought made her shudder. It wasn't something that she wanted to think about. But the truth was, and this thought made her shudder, too, that she didn't have a choice. It was either think of it, and figure something out, or remain where she was, as she was, wondering if anyone was looking for her still. She hadn't heard anything in the past hour, and was almost relieved by it, because when she heard nothing, it meant that no one was there.

He'd tied her to the bed, in such a way that she had the feeling it'd be impossible to get out. He'd taken to doing that a lot lately, and she knew that it was only because he was afraid she was going to leave. And she would have, too, if she could've gotten the damn knots undone, but no. She was stuck where she was, and there wasn't all that much she could do about it. She thought of home, and wished more than ever that she was there, and vaguely recalled the last argument she'd had with her father, right before she'd been taken. She wondered what had happened with the trial and everything else, and decided that she didn't want to know.

She continued to struggle against the ties. And after what seemed like forever, she finally got a hand loose.

* * *

The text message came while she was sitting in court. After Trevor had taken on her more high-profile case, she'd concentrated on another one, less high-profile, but still important. The phone had been set on silent, because she'd refused to turn it off, in case news came. And sure enough, news had. The message was from Connie.

_"I'm at the precinct. Jack's here, too. Come down as soon as you get out of court." _

Anna stared. There couldn't possibly be anything else wrong. She looked at her watch. Court was close to adjourning for the day. Asking for a recess at this point would probably be useless, and she knew it, so she sat, and looked up, towards the bench, while at the same time, replying to Connie's message under the table.

_"I'm almost finished. What's going on?" _

She didn't expect an answer. After all, she was sitting in the middle of court, and it wasn't going to look particularly right if she was called out on text messaging back and forth with a prosecutor, never mind the fact that Connie wasn't in any way involved with this case. It just wasn't going to look right. And so Anna slid her phone into her pocket, and rose to her feet as the prosecution finished.

"The defense has no more questions for this witness, your honor," she said, and the judge that had been drawn to see over this case nodded, before looking at his watch.

"Court is adjourned for the day," he said. "We will resume at nine o'clock tomorrow morning."

People started to move. Anna's client was led off, but she wasn't paying attention. She pulled her cell phone out of her pocket as she gathered her screen, and the new message from Connie popped up.

_"I think you'd better just come down to the precinct."_

Anna frowned. Something had to be wrong. Either there had been a development in the case, or…She didn't want to think about it. A hand on her shoulder made her jump as she left the courtroom, and she looked up to find Danielle standing there.

"Looks like we've both been stuck here today," she remarked, and then, "Are you all right?"

"I just got a message from Rubirosa telling me to come down to the precinct," said Anna, frowning. "I'm not sure yet."

"You want me to come along with you?" Danielle asked. Anna glanced at her watch and then sighed.

"If you've got nothing better to do, I suppose it can't hurt," she said. "You sure you want to drive all the way down there?"

"I'm sure," said Danielle. "Let me have your keys, I'll drive. You look a bit distracted."

She was, and she wasn't all too surprised that Danielle noticed it. They left the courthouse and headed towards the precinct. Anna fiddled with the necklace she was wearing and stared out the window as Danielle drove.

"What if something's wrong?" she asked, finally, breaking the silence between them. "What if they've found something, and we're only heading down there to hear that there's a body that needs to be identified?"

"Don't think like that," Danielle told her, quietly, but firmly. "Just think that whatever news there is will be good news, and maybe it will be."

Anna gave a rueful smile. "Connie tells me Jack's at the precinct," she said. "Makes me wish I'd had a reasonable amount of time left there so I could've asked for a continuance, or something."  
"Here's to hoping you're not going to need one, then." They'd come to the front of the precinct. "I'll drop you off here and find someplace to park, and then I'll be in. You'll be all right?"

Anna nodded, opened the passenger's side door and got out. A few seconds later, she had disappeared into the precinct.

* * *

She couldn't look him in the eye, and had refused to talk to him. Now, she sat in an interview room, which, she mused wryly, was quite different from an interrogation room. This place was actually somewhat comforting….more so than the last room she'd been in had been. She knew he was on the other side of the door, and knew that he wasn't going to leave until she spoke to him, at least once, but she couldn't bring herself to do so.

"So, how'd you know to come to this precinct?" Nina's voice was quiet, and she handed Rebecca a cup of coffee as she went on. "Just the first one you saw?"

Rebecca nodded, wordlessly, even though she'd seen quite a few precincts before coming to the 27th. Her wrists were still raw from the ropes that had held her. So were her ankles. She knew she was lucky to be there. Lucky that no one had caught her.

"I noticed you wouldn't talk to my partner," said Nina, hesitantly. "You want to tell me why that is?"

Rebecca shrugged. "Just…don't wanna talk to a guy," she admitted, without looking the detective in the eye. "I don't…really know why."

But she did. She just didn't want to admit it. She blinked, not surprised to find that she felt close to tears, but there were no tears there.

"I get it," said Nina, even though she didn't, really. "There are times when I don't wanna talk to guys, either."

There was silence. Finally, Rebecca offered up a faint smile. "Are you saying I'm not going to have to talk to them anytime soon?"

"Not until you say you want to," said Nina. "Whatever you're comfortable with is what we'll go with until this is all over, and we don't have to worry about it anymore."

She was being coddled. She knew this, because for starters, she was a victim, and the thought irritated her more than anything else right now. She felt cold, and wanted to be anywhere but where she was, but she couldn't leave just yet.

"I heard the press," she mumbled finally, staring down at the table. "They think I set the whole thing up."

"The press can say what they will; the evidence says otherwise. Everyone close to this case knows it," said Nina. "None of us believe that you set this up, Rebecca."

"You might not, but can you really speak for the others?" Rebecca asked dryly. "I was kidnapped, not brainwashed. There was probably doubt somewhere along the line."

She had a point, and Nina knew it, but wasn't about to admit to it. "Fair point," she said finally. "My partner and I, we're cops. We're supposed to question things, so we did."

"And you came to the conclusion that I had nothing to do with any of this."

"That we did."

Well, that was certainly a comfort, Rebecca thought dryly, and shifted slightly in her position. "I don't…really remember much about where I was…I didn't recognize anything when I….when I finally got away."

"That's all right," said Nina, at once. "Even if it doesn't come back later, we'll be able to work with whatever you give us.

Rebecca nodded, slowly, and stared down at the table in front of her. "I never saw his face," she said, her voice barely a whisper. "They…always blindfolded me before he came in, and I…just never saw him."  
Nina looked at her for a long moment and then slid a photo array onto the table. "Do you recognize any of the women here?"

Rebecca looked, and then looked away almost immediately. "Yes." This time, the answer was nearly inaudible. Nina sighed. This was better suited for Special Victims, she thought. It was likely that they would get involved at some point.

"Can you tell me which one?" she asked, softly. "That's all I need right now, and then you can go."

Outside the interview room, Jack paced. When he saw Anna, he went to her, not at all surprised to see Danielle a few minutes later.

"They…ah…Detective Cassady's talking to her," he said, quietly. "She wouldn't talk to me…couldn't even look at me."

"I'm sure it's not you," Anna replied. "Do we…know how she got here?"

"She ran," Jack replied, glancing towards the floor, rather than at her. "They left her tied. She…got loose somehow, and no one was there, so she ran."

He looked close to tears. Danielle glanced towards the interview room and sighed. "If you want me to go in there and end this…" she started, but Jack shook his head.

"No. I…think she'll be…fine, but…" He trailed off and shook his head again. "I don't know. I wish she would have talked to me."

"Sooner or later, she will," said Anna, "We'll just have to wait. It's going to take time."

The door to the interview room opened, and out came Nina, looking grim and relieved at the same time. "She identified Galinet."

"So, what does that mean?" Anna asked, before Jack could say anything. "We can hold up the kidnapping charges?"  
"Yeah," said Nina, "We should be able to hold 'em up. She…couldn't tell us much about Galinet's partner, but we should have enough to at least keep those charges while we look for him."  
"What if we don't find him?" Jack asked, finally. "Then what?"  
Nina shook her head at him. "Don't think like that," she said. "We've got every guy in this squad out, and if we need help, we can ask for it, and we will ask for it." She reached out and put a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry. We'll find him."


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Ok, I know it's been forever since I've updated and I promise, I'm still working on it. This storyline's just...a little bit more complicated than I thought it would be, but I am still working. Hopefully there'll be another update within the next few days. **

* * *

She watched the news. She didn't know why, because all it seemed to be was a continuation of the ongoing case and trial. It wasn't particularly late, by her standards, considering, but she could already feel her eyes starting to close. Flipping channels, Anna blinked, trying to concentrate, and heard the door open. A few seconds later, Jack appeared, looking about as tired as she felt.

"How is she?" she asked. He sighed and came to sit beside her on the bed.

"Tired, a little bit disoriented," he replied. "She asked me to thank you for letting her stay here."

Anna shook her head and slid an arm around his waist, leaning on his shoulder. "Don't worry about it," she said. "She can stay as long as she'd like and so can you. I doubt either of you want to be in Manhattan right now."

Jack gave a mirthless laugh. "No, I don't suppose we would," he said. There was a long silence and then he went on. "I think she's afraid to sleep."  
"Do you want me to go in there with her?" Anna asked, but he shook his head.

"If she needs anything, she'll let us know. She was already starting to drift off when I left her room."  
"That's good." Anna trailed off for a moment and then turned the television down. "Are you all right?"

"I'm not sure." Jack looked at the television and then at her. "She's…well, she asked me to keep the lights on, and it just…I don't…she hasn't done that since she was seven."

"Can you blame her?" Anna asked, and he shook his head again.

"No," he said. "No, I can't, and it bothers the hell out of me, because I can't help thinking that this is my fault. If I'd just been able to convict that…that woman…the first time…none of this would have happened."  
Anna switched the television off. "Don't think about it," she told him quietly. "Just don't. It'll only drive you up the wall and that isn't going to help. She doesn't need that right now and neither do you."

He gave her an amused look. "And I suppose you do?" he asked. Anna rolled her eyes.

"No," she said, "I don't need it either, but I'll put up with it. You, on the other hand, need to at least try and relax. Now that you're not over there playing the prosecutor…"

"I have nothing to take my mind off anything," said Jack, finishing her sentence. "Maybe I shouldn't have left the office."

"This might come out wrong, but I'm almost convinced that it's a good thing that you did, considering," said Anna, quietly. "You'll have time to…deal with all of this." "

She had a point. He did have time, for once, to deal with the little issues. In all honesty, Jack was surprised that Rebecca hadn't chosen to stay with Kelly rather than with him, considering.

"I know," he said, finally. "I know. I just wish I didn't have to, because…she…this shouldn't have happened to her."

"And what happened to you shouldn't have happened, either, but it did," said Anna. "I know you don't want to hear this, Jack, but sitting here and wallowing in this isn't going to help anyone, least of all her."

"A degree in psychology or whatever, then, along with the law degree, no?" he asked, only half-joking, and Anna shrugged.

"My sister's a shrink," she told him. "She's also about ten years older than me, so I got a lot of her psychobabble when I was a kid. She still thinks she can analyze me. It's almost funny now that we're older."

"I would imagine so," said Jack, and then, "You didn't have to turn the television off, you know. I didn't mind."

"I know," said Anna, "But I did mind, because you looked like you wanted to talk and we can't very well do that with the television on, now can we?"

Another point she had that he didn't want to admit to. "Sometimes I wonder about you, Anna."

"Sometimes I wonder about you, too, but I guess things are turning out all right." Her head was still on his shoulder, her arm still around his waist. "Are you sure you're all right?"

"A little bit better," said Jack, "Now that we've talked, that is. But it's late, you should sleep. One of us still has to work in the morning."

"Actually, Trevor told me to take the day off, so I'm home all day. I can stay up as late as I want to."

"You looked like you were already about to fall asleep when I walked in here a few minutes ago.

"Yeah, well, I've got my second wind now." Anna shifted so that she was sitting closer to him and went on. "I'm serious when I say that if either of you need or want anything, let me know."

"I would say that we've imposed enough, except for the fact that the circumstances have made it so that I don't really mind imposing." He leaned in to kiss her and she grinned up at him.

"Funny, I don't particularly mind, either."

* * *

She woke up to the sunlight hitting her in the face through the open window and the sound of her cell phone vibrating on the bedside table. Opening an eye, she fumbled for it, and glanced at the tiny screen. A new text message. She slid up and leaned against the headboard, drawing the covers up with her as she went to the phone's inbox.

_"Fallon's looking for a deal already. Fellowes isn't ready to deal yet, and Branch isn't likely to let her, even if it gets to that. Any thoughts on this, so Jack and Rebecca are at least represented here?" _

It was from Connie. Anna scowled, slightly, and wondered if this would ruin her day, and then decided that it wasn't going to as she sent a text message in reply.

_"Tell Fellowes that if she deals, she'll have hell to pay, because Galinet is the _last_ person in the world that deserves a deal. If it gets to that, you had better damn well make sure she tells you everything, and if she doesn't, then no dice."_

She could feel Jack stirring beside her and flipped her cell phone closed as he opened an eye to look at her.

"Morning," he said, drowsily, "Work?"

Anna sighed. "It was Connie," she said. "Fallon's looking for a deal, and Fellowes is playing hardball. She sent me a text message to ask if I had any thoughts so you and Rebecca would have a say."  
"I hope you told her that there'll be no deals," said Jack, suddenly wide awake, and Anna nodded.

"Yes, of course I did," she said. "I want that woman to go to prison for the rest of her life as much as you do, and she will."

"Considering a switch from defense to prosecution yet?"

"Honestly, yes. Considering the way things are right now, if I'm playing prosecution I technically can't be your so-called voice in this."

"I'd honestly rather have you as my voice than anyone else. I don't want to have to deal with this directly at the moment, and I refuse to subject my daughter to any more of it."

"Some kind of pillow talk, no?" Anna asked, a faint attempt at humor that Jack didn't miss and instead, smiled at.

"I suppose you could call it that," he said. "But it does need to be talked about, so we might as well do it now."

Anna slid back under the covers, shaking her head as she buried her face in the pillows. "It's supposed to be my day off," she muttered, her voice muffled by the fabric. He sighed.

"I know," he said, and reached over to rub her back, "I know. And I also know that this is a pain in the ass to have to deal with, but I'm glad you are."

"I want justice, as cliché as that sounds," said Anna, keeping her face in the pillows. "I want the system to actually work for once, damn it."

"You know, this almost makes me wonder why either of us became lawyers in the first place," said Jack, and Anna peered up at him.

"Honestly, the only reason I actually did it was because in high school, some idiot tried to tell me that girls couldn't make it as lawyers."

"What happened? Did you punch him or something?"

"No. He ended up becoming my ex-husband, and when I found out he was cheating, then I punched him."  
Jack laughed. "That sounds more like you," he said, and then, "I only really did it because of my father."

"Well, that's original," said Anna, looking amused. "What'd he have to do with anything?"

"Suppose I could say that he forced me into it; my original intention was to become a cop, but that never happened, obviously. Always used to say I'd be better than him, but I'm not so sure."

A lull came in the conversation. Jack continued on with his task at hand, and Anna shifted beneath him. "That feels good," she remarked. He laughed again.

"I can imagine," he said. "D'you have any plans for today, or are you going to just lay around here?"

"Well, I was thinking we could just lie around here, but that wouldn't be productive, now would it?"

"We could make it productive."

"I'll bet." Anna's phone buzzed again and she flipped it open to see another text message.

_"I let Fellowes know. She says she agrees completely. Also wants to meet up with you and Jack later today. Rebecca can come if she'd like to, but if she doesn't want to, she doesn't have to, just having you and Jack there will be enough." _

She sighed and looked up. "Connie says Amanda wants to meet up with you and I later on today, if that's all right with you?"

"She sent you a voicemail or something?" Jack asked, and Anna shook her head.

"Text message," she said. "You want me to tell her it's all right, or no?"

"Yeah. Tell her we'll meet up, but she shouldn't expect Rebecca to come, I doubt she's going to want to leave anytime soon."

"That's fine. I went grocery shopping, there's food, the television, computers, anything she wants, she can use."

"I don't know how we're ever going to thank you for this," Jack remarked, quietly, as Anna rolled out of the bed and wandered to the closet in order to get dressed. She looked out again and shook her head at him.

"You're not going to thank me for this for one reason," she said, "And that reason is that I love you, and I wouldn't be doing this if I didn't, so leave it be."

"I can't just leave it be," Jack started, but she cut him off.

"Yeah, you can," she said, "And yeah, you will, because I'm asking you to. I don't want you to worry about any of this. When it goes to the courtroom, I will handle what needs to be handled concerning you and Rebecca, unless Kelly decides she'd like to step in, at which point, I'd be more than happy to let her. She is Rebecca's mother, after all."

"I think Kelly's more afraid of handling this than you are, considering the fact that she's seen what her former client is capable of. I'm just hoping Erin sees it in time."

"Well, hopefully, she will. If she doesn't, well, then, maybe she'll just have to learn it the hard way."

* * *

"The police have turned Galinet's place upside down, and they've found nothing. We think she had Rebecca somewhere else."

Connie walked into Amanda's office and shook her head. "And Galinet's still not talking. She won't tell us anything."  
"Good, then she isn't getting the damn deal she's looking for, because she's not going to take without us giving something," said Amanda, flatly. "She might be wanting to make this shorter than it has to be, but I'm taking this to trial."  
"Can't say I don't agree with you," said Connie. "Anna finally text messaged me back, she says that she and Jack will meet up with us, I just have to give her a time."  
Amanda sighed, and motioned for the younger woman to sit down. "Imagine that," she said. "Four lawyers, three prosecutors and one defense attorney and for once, we all get along."  
"We all have the same goal in mind," said Connie, "To see Tara Galinet exactly where she belongs, rotting in prison for all she's done."  
"This is almost making me wish McCoy hadn't left, we could really use him on this," said Amanda, shaking her head. "As it is, I can see why he did. I nearly resigned myself once upon a time, but, then, sometimes work is the only way to get through a crisis."

"He wants to be there for his daughter," said Connie, "I can understand that, even if I don't have kids, and I'm sure you can, too."  
"Of course," said Amanda. "I'm just hoping this office can do right by him considering the major screw up that happened last time. I won't let it happen again."

"Branch is looking to make you the new head of the Homicide Bureau," said Connie, slowly, and Amanda nodded.

"He is," she said. "I spoke to him this morning, and he told me that Jack was the one who said I was the most qualified to take his place over here. I can't say it's not a compliment, because it really is."  
"Jack doesn't give compliments easily, or so I've heard," said Connie, a faint smile coming through her face. "If he says you're the most qualified, then I don't doubt it."  
"Nice to see that for once my second chair supports me; sometimes I can't stand the ADA's Branch likes to pair me off with."  
Silence, and then both women laughed. It was almost nice to be able to do something as normal as that, considering all that had happened between this point in time and the trial before this one.

"So," said Amanda, finally, "Around one for lunch, then? You'll let them know that we'll meet up, won't you?"

"Sure will," said Connie, "Do you want to choose the place or should we let them do it?"  
"Let them, but I'll buy," said Amanda, "I have the feeling he'll be more comfortable in a place where he's more familiar. Wherever he and Anna want to go is fine with me."  
"I'll let them know, then," said Connie, and started out of the office again. "I'll keep you updated as to that and to where the police are with the evidence."

"Thanks, Connie, I owe you one," said Amanda, but Connie shook her head, and left the office, closing the door behind her.

* * *

"You don't have a choice but to talk to us now," Nina said flatly. "You either give us the answers to our questions to the best of your knowledge, or we lock you up as an accessory."  
"I don't know a damn thing." Taylor Galinet, Tara's older brother, glared defiantly at both detectives that stood before him and shook his head. "Tara never said nothing to me, and I didn't ask, because I didn't want to know."  
"Don't lie to us," Ed retorted. "All that's gonna do is get your ass in even more trouble than it's already in. We know you were talking to her, we pulled the damn phone records. The dates all match."  
"You're reading it wrong. Tara and I hardly ever talk as it is, what the hell makes you think I'm gonna help her try to screw over some idiot lawyer?"

"Because you're her brother, and you have a history of getting her out of trouble. Don't you dare sit there and think that we're stupid, that we don't know you're the one who paid for Kelly Monahan to defend her in the last trial she faced."

"Just because I paid for her damn lawyer doesn't mean I'm going to help her with this mess. You all are on something, because I sure as hell had nothing to do with this."

"You're not convincing us with the hostile attitude, y'know," said Ed, shaking his head. "You don't even know what your sister did, do you?"  
"I know what you think Tara did, and it's a load of crap if you ask me. She's not violent. She wouldn't do anything like this."

"Then why the hell was she on trial for murder before?" Nina demanded, slamming crime scene photos from years long past down on the table. "You see this? Evidence pointed to her, but Monahan's smooth talking got her out of trouble and now she's taking it out on everyone who tried to put her where she belongs!"  
"She doesn't belong in prison!" Taylor shot back. "You don't know what the hell you're talking about."

"Sure we don't," said Ed. "We know that she did these latest murders because she confessed, and if she gets convicted, and we don't take the death penalty off the table, then we can stick a needle in her arm. You want your sister to die?"  
"You don't scare me. Your lot doesn't have a damn thing, and you're pulling it all out of your ass to save McCoy from getting what's coming to him."  
"You're gonna get what's coming to you if you don't learn to cooperate," Nina snapped. "Don't think we don't have enough to put you away for a while."

"If you did, you would've already done it by now, but we're still talking, which tells me that I'm not a suspect and that you're just fishing for information that you're not going to get. I don't have to tell you anything."  
"Yeah, and you don't have to go back to your family tonight, either," said Ed. "The way you're going, you're giving that prosecutor outside the window more than enough to hold you. D'you want that to happen?"

"Threatening me will get you nowhere."  
"We're not threatening you," said Nina. "We're serious. Dead serious, if you will. Your little sister murdered a cop, among other things, and if you think we're gonna sit here and let it slide…"

"How do you know it wasn't really McCoy, anyway? I know what the news has been saying, all the evidence pointed to him."  
"Until your sister opened her big mouth and confessed, and then had one of her lackeys kidnap McCoy's daughter. If you believe for one minute we're gonna think he had something to do with this after that, then maybe you're the one that's got issues."

Silence. Nina glared at the figure she'd just somewhat told off and then left the interrogation room. Ed followed her. In the observation room, Connie waited, and shook her head when she saw them.

"He's not going to give us anything," Ed remarked, before either of the women could speak. "He knows this game too well."

"From the first time around, or because he's had experience with the criminal justice system himself?" Connie asked wryly. "Does he have a rap sheet?"  
"As a matter of fact," said Nina, glancing down at the other manila folder that had been in her hands. "Not as extensive as his sister's, but he's been collared for at least two violent crimes."

"Those being?" Connie asked. Nina opened the folder.

"Two counts of aggravated assault on separate occasions. Pled out, did the time, and hasn't really been in trouble since."  
"And we have the evidence that he was in contact with his sister while the first part of this was going on?"  
"We do," said Ed, "Only problem is that we don't know what was said. All the calls were longer than two minutes, but that doesn't necessarily mean anything."  
"It means he spoke to her and that we can reasonably assume he was an accessory to whatever she was doing, but until we find more conclusive evidence, we can't really hold him," said Connie. "I'm sure he knows that already. We don't exactly have a choice but to let him go."  
"True, but it was worth it telling him that we could hold him just to watch him squirm, the pathetic idiot," Nina muttered. "Do we want to put a detail on him?"  
"Tara's allowed visitors, but all visits are monitored, so anything we need, we can probably get," said Connie, looking slightly disgruntled. "I'd prefer that she wasn't allowed any visitors, but then, we can't exactly deny people their basic rights, now can we?"  
"If there's one person I'd like to skip due process with, it's her," Ed remarked. "So, we don't need the detail?"

"Probably not," said Connie. "I'd like to think we've thrown him enough that he won't try anything stupid."

Nina shook her head. "I wouldn't be too sure of that if I were you."


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: And here we go...I think things might get just a little bit more complicated after this, but we'll see. In any case, yay! An update!**

* * *

She went for a run after leaving a note, because by the time she woke up, Anna and her father were already gone. It was a good thing, but at the same time, it wasn't. She wanted to be alone, but she didn't. The neighborhood was quiet and unfamiliar, which she hadn't decided on yet. Staten Island was definitely a lot different from Manhattan. She found herself almost wishing for the rush, and the crowds, but didn't think she had the heart to make her way over the bridge.

Rebecca took the rubber band from around her wrist and used it to tie her hair back. She'd brought her cell phone along in case she felt like talking to anyone, but the truth was that at the moment, she didn't. The quiet suited her for the moment. And in any case, it was better than facing the reporters that had been in her face the moment it had been revealed that she had been found…or rather, that she'd rescued herself.

The phone went off as she slowed to a walk and she drew it out of her pocket, flipping it open when she saw who was on the caller ID.

"Aren't you a voice for sore ears?" she asked. "How've you been?"  
On the other side of the line, Tammy Cooper gave an obvious sigh of relief. "I was wondering if I'd dialed the wrong number for a minute," she admitted. "I'm fine. But I don't want to talk about me. How are you?"  
"As fine as I can possibly be," said Rebecca, an almost amused look crossing her face as she continued walking. "Considering all that's happened, I mean."

Tammy sighed. "I'm sorry. I don't mean to bring that up, I just…well, we've all been so worried, and none of us have talked to you in forever…"  
"It's fine," said Rebecca, even though on some level, it really wasn't. "I know we haven't talked in a while. I just…haven't really been up to it."

"Are you staying with someone or do you have nowhere to crash?" Tammy asked. Rebecca sighed.

"I'm staying out on Staten Island with my dad and his…well, girlfriend, for lack of a better term. I've actually ventured out of the house; in fact, I'm taking a walk right now."

"So things are starting to get a little bit back to normal?" Tammy asked slowly, and Rebecca sighed again.

"Guess you could say that," she said. "It's…not as awkward as it was when I first got back, but…I can't really sleep at night."  
Silence. Apparently, Tammy could think of nothing to say to this, because it lingered for a long moment before she said anything. "Well, you know…if you need anyone to talk to…"  
"Tam, I was kidnapped, not murdered," Rebecca said dryly, and wondered why she suddenly felt so at ease with the whole thing. Probably a way of trying not to deal with it, she thought, and decided not to go there. "We can talk. Just…not always about that. I…didn't even give the police many details."

"You left stuff out?"

"No. I just told them what I remembered, which isn't much, before you ask. I tried not to think about it."

Another silence, and then Tammy changed the subject. "I dumped him, you know," she said. "Finally decided I didn't want to put up with him and his crap anymore, so I told him it was over."

"About time," Rebecca said dryly. "How many times have I told you to break it off with him, now?"

"Yeah, yeah, I get it. I know I should have done it a while ago, but sometimes it's hard to let go, y'know?"

"Yeah, I know. Sometimes it is hard, but I'm glad you did it, you hear? Now you'll be able to find someone who actually deserves you."

Tammy laughed. "Yeah, maybe," she said. "Honestly, a couple million guys in this city, and I get landed with all the idiots. You think it's me?"

"I think it's them," said Rebecca, amused. "I think they can see a good heart and they know how to take advantage of it, and you know what? To hell with 'em."

"Sometimes I wonder what I'd do if I didn't have you to knock some sense into me," Tammy remarked. "Listen, if you're out on Staten Island, do you think you'll be coming into Manhattan anytime?"

"Um…" Rebecca stopped in her tracks and sighed, running a hand through her hair. "I don't know. I'm really not sure, but…"

"If you don't want to, you don't have to," Tammy said quickly. "Seriously, Becky, I mean it. We can all come out to someplace on the island if you want."

"Actually, you're the only one I really want to see right now," Rebecca said quietly. "And I'd really rather you came out to the island."

"Done," said Tammy. "You just tell me where and when, and I'll be there, all right?"

A faint smile crossed Rebecca's face at this. "Aren't you always?" she asked, biting her lip to keep from laughing out loud.

"Yeah, I am, and I will be 'till you tell me to go away," said Tammy. "You can count on that. Friends forever, remember?"

And suddenly the reminder of a promise made back in the seventh grade brought tears to Rebecca's eyes and she blinked, hoping they'd go away, but when she didn't, she wiped them away.

"Yeah," she said. "Yeah, I do."

* * *

They met up with Amanda and Connie at a place near the courthouse, because Connie had been handling an arraignment, and they decided that it would be the most convenient place for them to meet.

"It's nice to see the both of you," Amanda remarked, as they all sat, "I'm sure Connie's already told you what's going on?"  
"She has," said Anna. "She said you've got a meeting with Erin Fallon sometime this afternoon?"  
"All Erin's doing," said Amanda, looking slightly disgruntled. "She wants to deal, but I'm going to tell her flat out no dice."

"Unless, of course, she confesses to everything, gives you her accomplice, and also gives you details," said Jack, dryly. Amanda sighed.

"I think you know the game too well," she remarked, "But yes, I can't take something and not give something. I'm sure you know that as well as I do."

Jack nodded. "I do," he said, "But I won't tell you I'm happy with it, because I'm not."  
"I should think not," said Connie, "But as it is, you know Branch isn't going to give us much of a choice."

"Of course not," Anna said dryly. "If you ask me, he needs to take a harder look at this case instead of staying behind that damn desk."

"Couldn't agree with you more, but it's been years since he actually prosecuted anything, and I doubt he's going to want to take this on," said Amanda. "There's already talk about him retiring."  
"I'll be damned," said Jack. "Here I was thinking that he would stay in the role until someone forced him out."  
"There's a lot of talk around the office about that someone being you, if he does retire," Connie remarked. "Or rather, there was, before you left."  
Jack sighed. "I doubt I'm cut out to play the District Attorney," he remarked, looking suddenly amused. "I've caused too much trouble as an EADA."

"I think I'll stay out of this particular conversation and instead change the subject," said Anna, giving him an amused look as she put her hand over his. "What exactly does Fallon think she's going to get?"

"She wants us to drop the Murder One charge, because it's the one that the jury's most likely to convict on," said Amanda. "She also wants us to drop the other charges down to Man One, but I've already told her it's Murder Two or nothing." Amanda replied.

"If you were to plead her out and she and Galinet both agreed to the deal, how many years would be served?" Jack asked.

"At least twenty-five," said Amanda. "Depends on whether or not we offer parole, and honestly, I haven't really thought about it."

"I suppose it wouldn't particularly look right if a plea deal didn't offer some sort of parole, as disturbing as the idea seems," said Anna.

"You're probably right," said Connie. "Either way, Branch is going to have to authorize any deal making, so anything we do has to go through him."

"And has to make its way past a judge. We'll be dealing with Elizabeth Donnelly, by the way," said Amanda. "Not exactly sure when we're going to trial, but we drew her out of the wheel and we've yet to hear about an open calendar date."

"Is there any chance that Rebecca will have to testify about what happened to her?" Anna asked, and could feel Jack freeze beside her as Connie replied.

"There's a chance that she might have to," she said, slowly, and without looking Jack in the eye. "A slim one, but it's still there. If we can't get Galinet to tell us anything in exchange for whatever deal Branch authorizes, if it gets there, she'll have to."

"Is there any way that any testimony she gives can be read into evidence?" Jack asked. Amanda sighed and shook her head.

"Afraid not," she said. "I don't like it any more than you do, and if there was a way around it, believe me, I would use it, but there isn't."  
Jack frowned slightly, and shifted in his position. "I just don't want her to have to go through anything more than she's already had to go through."

"I understand you completely," said Amanda. "Just trust me when I say that if I can find a way for her to avoid testifying, I will do everything I can to make it happen."

Silence. It was broken only by the sounds of the restaurant around then and even then, it didn't seem like enough to fill it. After a while, Anna spoke again.

"Has there been any word from Kelly about any of this?" she asked. Both Amanda and Connie shook their heads.

"The only other people we've heard from concerning this are Danielle Melnick, Trevor Langan and Judge Ross," said Connie. "Other than them, there's been no word from anyone outside the office except the two of you, for obvious reasons."

"Nice to know some people still have the decency to make actual inquiries without getting into people's faces," Jack muttered, sarcastically. "It's gotten to the point that neither Becky or I want to be in Manhattan at all."

"Can't say I blame you," said Amanda. "The reporters are starting to get ridiculous. This is definitely becoming more than just a press case. Fallon and I are actually due in front of Judge Donnelly today for a hearing. I want the media out, Fallon wants 'em in."

"Figures," said Jack. "Erin never could resist the thrill of press cases; I'm not surprised she'd try to keep them there, never mind what effect it'll have on everyone else."

"I think she just wants the chance to take you down another peg or two…" Anna trailed off, looking suddenly furious. "Do you think Judge Donnelly will allow the cameras?"  
Amanda shook her head. "She deals with a lot of SVU's trials, and she's never allowed cameras in her courtroom before. There's no reason to believe that she'll allow it this time, considering the fact that…"

She trailed off. This time, the silence was actually awkward. "You'll probably have to turn her…ah…well, you'll have to turn Galinet's accomplice over to Casey Novak," Jack remarked after a while.

"I know," said Amanda, "I've already informed her. There's no evidence saying that he did anything other than what happened during the kidnapping, but…Rebecca will probably have to speak to an SVU detective in order to make anything stick. Casey can't prosecute unless an official complaint has been made."  
"We'll see what we can do," said Anna, "She doesn't seem too keen on talking to anyone, not that we can blame her. If she doesn't want to talk, we're not going to force her."

"We hardly expect you to," said Connie. "Even charging him with accessory and accomplice to murder will put him away for a while."

"That's good. Whoever he is…" Jack trailed off and shook his head. "He needs to serve as much time as the law allows, and then…"

"If he gets out on parole, he'll be kept track of," said Amanda, "But that won't happen for a while. Once we find him, we'll have more leverage to use."

"I'd rather have you deal with Galinet than with the so-called man that hurt my child," Jack told her.

"Trust me, we feel the same way. We'll avoid dealing with him for as long as we can, but if it gets to that point, we're going to have to," said Amanda. "The reason I wanted to talk to you is because I wanted to make sure that we're all on the same sheet of music and that you two are all right with whatever we do."

"So long as you run it by us first, we should be, but don't think we're not going to voice our opinions," said Anna. "We don't want you to think that we're infringing on your case."  
"Not at all," said Connie, before Amanda could speak. "I'm sure we're all aiming for the same thing here."

"I couldn't agree with you more," said Jack. "Suppose one of us should talk to Kelly at some point? There's also a chance that she'll have to testify."

"Considering, I suggest that it isn't you," said Amanda. "Not to put you off or anything, but…"  
"I get what you mean," said Jack, cutting her off. "It probably isn't the best idea for me to speak to her."  
"I'll get Danielle or Trevor to talk to her, then, if I can't do it myself," said Anna, and looked at her watch. "Traffic's going to be a pain if we don't leave now. Shall we call it a day, for now?"

Amanda and Connie both nodded and rose to their feet at the same time Jack did.

"Sounds like a plan," said Amanda, as she left money on the table to cover the tab. She continued on as they moved to leave. "I'll keep you updated."

Jack offered up a faint, mirthless smile. "We'll keep our phones on."


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Sorry about the delay in updates...my muse has been distracted, and now I'm starting to think it's on something, but we'll see what you all have to think. TOS still isn't mine. **

* * *

The sound of her cell phone ringing caught her attention before much of anything else did. She'd made a habit of taking the subway into work every now and then, which made it hard to hear, but her phone was one of those things that she could always hear, if only because of her line of work. Slightly amused by this, Erin Fallon reached into her pocket and pulled it out, flipping it open in order to answer it.

"What?"

"The District Attorney's office isn't going to deal with you," Danielle said in reply. "I'm sure you've already figured that out by now, but I figured I might as well mention it."

Erin rolled her eyes. "The District Attorney's office is determined to put someone away, and they have the wrong person," she said. "I wasn't aware you were their new spokesperson. Maybe if the police went around and actually did their jobs, you wouldn't be telling me this."  
"If you weren't so stubborn, you wouldn't be so convinced that you're not in over your head," Danielle replied flatly. "They've done their jobs, and now it's gone to the courts."

"Which means it's up to our dear Ms. Fellowes and her lot to do their jobs and for me and mine to do ours," Erin told her. "What good is the justice system without cops and lawyers, anyway?"

"You're aware of the fact that your client has been identified as the one who kidnapped Rebecca McCoy, aren't you?" Danielle asked. Erin sighed.

"I am," she said. "And believe me, I don't like it any more than you do, but honestly, Danielle, there's nothing that I can do about it."

"That's the thing about our lot," Danielle said dryly. "If we do it, we do it because we're getting paid. Tell me something, Erin, in a case like this, how willing would you be to go pro bono?"

"That's not exactly a fair question, Danielle. It depends on the circumstances, you know that. I'm not above going legal aid, and you know it."

"Sometimes I wonder," Danielle said mildly. "It seems to me that you're determined to see this one taken as far as it can possibly go."  
"I'll take it as far as it needs to go," said Erin. "It's hardly my fault that Amanda's playing hardball, I've let her know where I stand on this."

"And you know that her office is going to protect their own unless they see reason not to," Danielle pointed out. "You were an ADA once, Erin, or have you forgotten?"

"I haven't," Erin retorted. "But then, Danielle, some parts of people's lives are best left forgotten, now aren't they?"

"If this is turning into some vendetta of yours…" Danielle started, but Erin cut her off.

"It's not," she said. "Believe me, it's not. All I know is that we all go by the same line, Danielle, and they're innocent until they're proven guilty."

"Your client confessed."

"Under coercion."

"There was no coercion, and you know it. The detectives did their jobs, but you got yourself into this."

"Exactly, Danielle, I got myself into this, and I don't need the lecture. What I need is to get this case over and done with, and you talking to me isn't helping."

"After what your client did, you're damn lucky any lawyer is talking to you, much less myself," Danielle shot back. "If this wasn't a powder keg before, it's definitely one now, and you, Erin, are one of the fuses."

"And I suppose Jack and Anna are two of the others, am I right?" Erin replied sarcastically. "Don't think I don't know she's acting as counsel on his part. I don't get why, honestly. As far as any of us know, he's got nothing to hide."

"You're right, he doesn't. Anna's only putting up with this because he doesn't want to and neither does Rebecca."

"So it's not really me drawing this out, is it? It's Amanda. I told her I was perfectly willing to deal, but no. She doesn't want to listen."

"Oh, she'll listen, to a jury telling her that they've convicted your client on all charges. This isn't one you're going to win."

The doors slid open, suddenly, and Erin stepped out into the crowd at the station, following them down the platform and up the stairs.

"We'll see about that."

* * *

"I don't see why they can't just read her grand jury testimony into evidence. It makes no sense."  
Anna had been pacing the length of Trevor's office for the past five minutes, and had so far shown no sign of stopping as she continued on.

"She's the victim here, for heaven's sake. Galinet confessed. Amanda should be able to take this one, slam dunk, but no…Erin just _had_ to get pulled into it."

"You know how Erin is," Trevor said dryly, "Anything that looks like a press case, she'll be around in one way or another."

"And she wonders why she never made it in the DA's office," Anna said acidly. "Honestly, if she's only in this for the exposure, she ought to rethink what she does for a career."

"You know, a good number of lawyers in this city have only become well known because of press exposure," said Trevor. "You can't tell me that you and I have never been involved in press cases."

"Well, yeah, but we don't go looking for them," said Anna. "She goes looking, and as luck would have it, not only does she get involved in one of the biggest cases this city's looking at right now, but one that her ex-husband is involved in."  
"Why do I get the feeling that that's what bothers you more than the fact that she's actually involved in this?"

"Because it probably is, and knowing me, I'm not going to admit it to anyone but you," said Anna, stopping in her tracks and turning to look in Trevor's direction. "And don't you dare tell anyone."

"I wouldn't do that to you," Trevor replied, calmly. "Trial starts in two weeks or so Fellowes told me to pass along to you."

"And you're only just telling me that now? Lovely. I have two weeks to wait for everyone's lives to get torn apart, yet again. Do you mind telling me how the hell that works?"

"I'm not sure how it works, but if all goes well, we'll get our convictions and Erin will be left to eat whatever she's telling Amanda."

"Imagine that, two defense attorneys waiting for a conviction."

"Three, if you count Danielle. She called me earlier; said she talked to Erin. Didn't do much good."

"Why am I not surprised?" Anna started pacing again and shook her head. "I can't believe this. I'm tempted to say it's the DA's office being stubborn, but I don't want them to deal either, so I have no room to talk."

"Well, I won't tell you that you're wrong, because you're not," said Trevor, "But at the same time, I think you're worrying too much."  
"Erin's got a reputation as one of the best criminal defense attorneys in this city, and you're telling me I worry too much?"

"Anna, you've taken her on in court before, and so has Amanda. Hell, so has Danielle. If any one of you three can't handle her this time around, I'll hand in my license."

"Sure you will. I should live to see that day, and I should live to see the day that this ends, because honestly, it doesn't feel like it will anytime soon."  
"The police are still looking for Galinet's accomplice."

"Yes, and they'll hand him off to Casey Novak when they get him, because as far as anyone knows, he didn't do much other than what Casey's set to prosecute him for."

"I'm surprised they haven't pulled the Special Victims Unit to look for this guy."

"They were tempted to, but I think they decided that it was best it stayed in the two-seven. They don't want it getting to too many of the precincts what's happened."

"I can't imagine Rebecca would want it out there, either. Has she spoken to you at all?"

Anna shook her head, and started pacing again. "No. She seems content enough to be on the island, but…it worries me."  
"She's not talking to Jack, either?"

"Oh, she's talking to him, and I can't say I'd expect her to talk to a stranger, least of all one who's seeing her father, but still…"  
"I get the feeling that she'll come around when all of this is over and done with," said Trevor, when Anna trailed off and said nothing else. "Don't worry about it, all right? Everything will be fine."

* * *

She had been working from home, mostly because she wasn't too sure that she could handle being in the office. And even being at home was starting to get to the point of being too much, because it was too quiet, even with the radio on. The good thing about being able to pick and choose which cases she took on was that she didn't particularly have to take on anything, and at the moment, the only case she had wasn't of particular importance, considering everything else that was going on.

Kelly reached for the stereo's remote and changed the track of the CD that was playing, thinking vaguely that the mix wasn't even hers, but Rebecca's, as a song that sounded more rock or metal than anything else came on. She listened to it for a moment before deciding to leave it where it was, and going back to focus on the paperwork from the last case that she'd taken. It didn't work. And then the doorbell rang, startling her out of her thoughts and she sighed, getting up and going to answer it, leaving the music on. It rang again. Kelly rolled her eyes and turned the key in the lock before pulling the door open.

"What are you doing here?" The words escaped her before she could really think about them, but Jack gave her an amused look anyway.

"I wanted to talk," he said, "To you. About this."  
Kelly sighed, but moved to let him in anyway. "Why am I not surprised?" she asked dryly.

"You knew this was coming" Jack replied, closing the door behind him and wandering after her into the kitchen. "There's no avoiding it."  
"Yes, and there's no avoiding the fact that our daughter won't speak to me because I was her abductor's lawyer."

"Becky isn't really talking to anyone. It's not just you."

Kelly gave a derisive snort. "I'll bet," she said, and then, "So tell me, Jack, why are you really here?"  
"Because no one has seen hide or hair of you since Galinet was arrested," said Jack. Kelly scowled at him.

"Don't you say that name in front of me," she said, flatly. "That woman has done enough as it is."  
"I know," said Jack, "You know, there are quite a few of our fellow attorneys who are worried about you."  
"That's lovely," Kelly said dryly. "Tell them not to worry. I'm just trying to figure out how the hell things got so screwed up."  
"There aren't any easy answers."  
"I know that, damn it, don't talk to me like I'm a child. I know how to play the game."  
"Then why are you falling apart?"  
Silence. It wasn't a question that Kelly had expected, and it had thrown her for a loop. Pulling the top off the bottle she'd yanked out of the fridge, she poured a glass and downed it, smirking at the expression that crossed Jack's face.

"What?" she said. "You're the only one who's allowed to drink this stuff?"  
He frowned slightly at her. "You're not yourself," He said. "Kelly, for the love of heaven, this is why everyone is worried."  
"This is my business and mine alone. If you only came around here to lecture me…"  
"I came around here to talk some sense into you, but if all you're going to do is stand here and get wasted…"

"Don't you dare stand there and talk to me about that, like you've never done it before," Kelly snapped. "You handle it your way, and I will handle it mine."  
"You can't keep going like this."  
"Sure I can. Now what do you really want?"  
But Jack didn't answer and a long, awkward silence fell between them when Kelly said nothing, either. She glared at him for a long moment before staring down at the cup sitting on the counter before them. Her hair was falling into her face. He reached out a tentative hand to push it back and when she grabbed his hand before he could pull away again, he stood there and waited.

"I can't do this." Kelly's voice was quiet, little more than a whisper, so much so that Jack had to lean into hear her. "Not like this."  
And suddenly he was holding onto her in such a way that he hadn't, in years. She turned so that her face was buried against his shirt and went on.

"Don't let me go," she said.

And he didn't.


	7. Chapter 7

Anna was, to put it shortly, nothing less of surprised when she got home and no one was there. Rebecca has left a note on the table again, so her absence was explained. Jack, on the other hand, had claimed to have something to do and had vanished into thin air. She was half-tempted to call him, but decided not to, figuring that it was best to leave well enough alone.

Besides that, she had things to do, which included going over a few things for Connie and Amanda. She could keep herself occupied until someone else came along. The phone rang and she reached out and hit the speakerphone button.

"Hello?"

"Got a minute?" Trevor's voice came over the line and Anna rolled her eyes.

"For you? Always," she said, half-joking. "What do you want?"

"Just to check on you," came the reply, "You didn't look so good when you left."

"You noticed?" Anna asked, and made a face. "Damn. I was hoping that no one would."

"Well, of course I was going to notice, I work with you every day." Trevor trailed off for a moment and then went on. "How goes it?"

"Well, Judge Donnelly's barred cameras from her courtroom, thank heaven, so it should be smooth sailing. We've got a little less than two weeks before the actual trial begins."

"Well, that's good. Any news on whether or not Rebecca will have to testify?"

"No. They're still working on it. Odds are that she probably won't, if the police can't find the second guy."

"They will," said Trevor, "You just can't stop hoping for it. Heard from Danielle or anyone else?"

"Danielle called while I was on the ferry coming home to the island," said Anna, "She sounded distracted, though. Probably working on another case."

"Yeah, probably. It's been a while since any of us have picked up one of those."

"Yeah, it has. I hope you all don't think that you can't because of this."

"It's not that. It's just…a matter of being there for those that matter to you, y'know?"  
"How profound. I'll keep that in mind." Anna took the call off speakerphone and got up, wandering into the kitchen. "You know, I never really used to notice how big this place was until people started living with me."

"Anna….Well, the place is big, I'll give you that much."

"Just because you don't approve of my relationship doesn't mean you have the right to be snarky about it."

"I'm not. I'd just rather not see you hurt."

"He's not going to hurt me." Anna pulled a carton of milk out of the fridge, along with a bottle of chocolate syrup. "I appreciate your worrying, Trevor, but don't. Everything is fine."

"Suit yourself, but don't say I didn't warn you," said Trevor. "You sure you're feeling all right?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, I promise. Quit worrying. You're starting to sound like my sister." Anna pulled a spoon from her silverware drawer and started stirring. "Anything else you wanted to talk about?"

"No, that's about it," said Trevor, "You need anything, you let me know?"  
"I will," said Anna, "Promise. And you know it goes both ways."

"Yeah, yeah. I'll talk to you in the morning."  
And with that, he hung up. Anna rolled her eyes again and switched her own receiver off, leaving it on the counter as she took a sip form the glass she held. The kitchen door opened as she leaned back against the counter, and there was Rebecca.

"Oh…hey," she said, upon noticing Anna, "Is Dad here?"

"No, he had something to do in Manhattan," Anna replied, "You hungry? I was thinking of making something, ordering out…whatever you want to do."

Silence. She wondered for a moment if she had pushed too hard, but after a minute, Rebecca offered up a faint smile.

"Actually, pizza sounds really good right about now," she admitted.

Anna grinned and reached for the phone again. "Where from?"

* * *

The first thing that registered with him when he woke up was that it was dark out. The second thing was that he wasn't on Staten Island, with Anna. There was an empty place in the bed, a lamp on the bedside table casting a faint light over the room, and pants that were obviously his on the floor.

He reached for them, pulled them on, and then got up. It was past midnight, he noticed, upon looking at the alarm clock .Anna was probably already asleep. The thought of her made a guilty feeling settle over him and he knew exactly why. Footsteps caught his attention, and he looked up to see Kelly in the bedroom doorway, drinking coffee.

"I was wondering when you were going to wake up," she said, quietly. "There's coffee if you want any."

Jack blinked, still having not adjusted completely to the light. "You're wearing my shirt," he said, in reply.

"I know." Kelly trailed off and then glanced over towards the window. The curtains were drawn. She walked over and opened them, not that there was really any light outside, given the time. "So, what'd you tell her?"

Funny how she knew the routine so well, Jack thought, though he wasn't exactly surprised by it. "I told her I had something to do."

"Someone, more like," Kelly said dryly. "Why is it that this always seems to happen to you?"  
"Let's not go there." The guilty feeling had returned. He wondered when it had gone away, and wondered why the hell it had in the first place.

"When does the trial start?" It was an obvious attempt to change the subject, on Kelly's part, and he said nothing to object it.

"Just short of two weeks," he said. "Are you planning on showing up, or are you going to keep hiding in this house of yours?"

"I'll be there," said Kelly, "I want to watch Galinet hang as much as you do. And I think I've had my fill of this damned house for a while."

"Of course you have," Jack said dryly. "But notice how it takes something like this to get you to decide that."

"I didn't hear you complaining."

She had a point, and he knew it. Effectively silenced, he leaned back against the headboard, since he was still sitting on the bed, and gave her a look.

"There's a reason it didn't work between us the first time," he told her, and she nodded, sitting down in the window seat and looking over at him.

"I know. But then, you never came across as the sort to stick with one person for longer than you had to."

"Things change."

"Then why are you still here? For that matter, Jack, why'd you even bother coming around again after the first time?"

It was a good question. He didn't know why he was still there, other than the fact that Kelly had on his shirt, which meant that technically, he couldn't leave. And he wasn't particularly sure about why he'd come back, either.

"You know this was a mistake," Jack said finally, and Kelly gave him an amused look.

"You say that now, but do you really mean it?"

"Don't play games with me. This was over before it began, and don't try to jerk me around over it."  
"Wouldn't dream of it." Kelly got to her feet and wandered into her closet. "You can have your shirt back in a minute."

His cell phone rang as the closet door closed. Reaching for it, he glanced at the caller ID and felt his heart drop as he flipped it open.

"Hey," said Anna's voice, "You crashing at your place, then?"

"Yes." The lie slipped from him easily, and he silently cursed the ability for that to happen. "It's late, didn't want to wake anyone up. Is Becky with you?"

"Yeah. She's watching a movie, eating popcorn…we had pizza, you missed out." Anna trailed off, and on her side of the line, frowned slightly. "You sound distracted about something, you all right?"

"I'm fine. Just tired. I'll probably come back out to the island in the morning," Jack replied. "Everything ok out there?"

"Everything's great. I'm just starting to notice how big this stupid house is without other people here, though. Guess I've grown used to having people around."

She sounded so happy about it that it hurt to hear her talking about it. "Well, if you get tired of it…"

Anna laughed. "I don't think I'll get tired of it anytime soon," she said, and then, "You'd better sleep. See you in the morning?"

He nodded, and then remembered that he was not in a place where she could see him. "Yeah," he said. "I'll be there in the morning."

And then she hung up, and he found himself wondering exactly why the hell he wasn't already there.

* * *

"Murder one carries the death penalty," said Nina, and Ed looked over at her. They were still sitting in the squad room, because neither of them had anything better to do. It had been a while since Anna had left, with the files that Connie and Amanda had asked her to look over, and it didn't appear as if either detective was going anywhere anytime soon.

"Yeah," he said, "It does. What does that have to do with anything?"

"Galinet murdered a cop. That's an automatic murder one charge, which means if a jury decides that she's eligible for the death penalty, it's likely she'll be sentenced to death row," said Nina. "Now, tell me this. What one thing is most likely to make a perp least likely to cooperate with us?"  
"Having the death penalty on the table," said Ed, and then, "I still don't see where you think you're going with this. Fellowes already said she's not dealing. Branch isn't going to let her."

"Yeah, Branch isn't going to let her if it involves parole within the next twelve to twenty-five years after we convict her," said Nina. "But I'm willing to bet that Branch will authorize Fellowes to deal if it involves life in prison with little possibility of any parole, instead of putting her on death row."

"You must be on something," said Ed. "You do realize that in cases like this, any deal that might go through has to be put in front of the families first, right? Tell me which one of the families is likely to go for that."

"I don't know, but it's always worth a shot. We've got nothing, Ed. If we can't find Galinet's accomplice, then we're screwed."

"We're already screwed. Finding him isn't likely to do us a lot of good. If anything, he'll insist on complete immunity before he says one word about all the crap Galinet made him do. Besides, Fellowes won't be dealing with him anyway; Novak will be."

"Rebecca hasn't yet said anything to the Special Victims Unit; how the hell is Novak dealing with him?"

"That's in the DA's office, not the department. All we gotta do is find the guy and it doesn't look like that's going to happen anytime soon."

"Well, it's bound to happen sooner or later. We haven't been pulling all nighters for nothing. He'll turn up."

Silence. Nina had sounded a lot more confident than she felt, and she knew it. They'd already tried with Galinet's brother, and had gotten nothing. It wasn't exactly likely that they would get anything from any of the other family members, either. None of them had shown any willingness to cooperate.

"We've at least got to talk to Fellowes and see what she has to say about that theory," said Nina. "I'm sure that if the families know she'll go to prison for the rest of her life, they'll be fine with whatever deal goes through."

"Yeah, and if it gets to the point where Fellowes has to deal all the way down to twelve to twenty-five with parole in seven?" Ed asked skeptically. "I don't know. It's too big of a gamble, even for me. I'm not willing to take that chance."

"And if it's the only chance we have at getting something? Then what?"

"You know as well as I do that if Galinet's going to give up her accomplice, she's gonna want the murder one charge gone, and she's gonna want everything else dealt down to man one. That's not gonna happen."

Another silence. Finally, Ed looked over at his partner again and sighed. "All right," he said. "We'll talk to Fellowes, but don't say I didn't tell you if she tells you to forget about it."

"That's all I'm asking," said Nina. "If it doesn't work that way, then at least we'll know that we tried."

"Trial's just short of two weeks. We're dealing with Judge Donnelly. If we can find this guy before then, it'll probably be a miracle."

"Then that's just what we'll have to keep our fingers crossed for."


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: And the latest update. My muse has finally been inspired again. **

* * *

"So, what you're asking is for me to take that off the table, and to offer life instead."

Silence. Neither detective answered. Amanda leaned forward on her desk, and pinched the bridge of her nose as she went on.

"What makes you think it's going to work?" she asked. Ed glanced over at Nina. She looked back at him, before sighing resignedly. It was, after all, her little theory that had gotten them there in the first place.

"We think that the only reason Galinet's not cooperating with us is because she knows that we could stick a needle in her arm for the last murder," she said. "That's why we think that it's more likely that we'll get her to cooperate if we take the death penalty off the table."

"I take it the department knows that you're pitching this little theory to the District Attorney," said Amanda, but Ed shook his head.

"No," he said. "They don't know. The only other person outside this room who knows is our lieutenant."

"So, take the death penalty off the table, offer life instead, and you think she'll cooperate," said Amanda, and sighed. "I can't promise you that it'll work, Detectives. I don't know if Branch will go for this."

"Even if he doesn't, it's at least worth mentioning," said Nina, and Amanda nodded.

"Yeah, it is," she said. "I can promise you that I'll put it in front of Branch for considering, but I can't promise you anything else. If it doesn't work then you'll just have to go about what you've been doing all along."

"We get it," said Ed. "Thanks for at least hearing us out." He rose to his feet and Nina followed suit as he went on. "You'll keep us posted?"

"You know it," said Amanda.

And then both detectives were gone, closing the door behind them. A few minutes later, the door opened again, and there was Connie.

"We might have a problem," she said, and Amanda looked up, sharply, frowning.

"What's that problem?" she asked, slowly, not really wanting to know, but knowing at the same time that she needed to in order to work the case. Connie stepped into the office and closed the door behind her, leaning against it.

"Novak is saying that minus Galinet's accomplice, she can't take anything to trial, because there's no physical evidence that anything happened, and even if there was, it's long gone by now."

"So in other words, if we don't find this guy, he's going to walk," said Amanda. "What else?"

"Well, Casey also told me that if you thought it would work, we could come up with some way to charge Galinet as an accessory to rape because she's the one who facilitated it in the first place, even if she didn't do it."

"And this is a problem, how?"  
"Because without Rebecca's testimony, there's nothing to say that any rape occurred. She led us to where she was, and the police interviewed everyone within that block and the next one over, but no one heard anything, no one saw anything."

Amanda bit back the sudden desire to swear. This definitely complicated things. The trial was fast approaching and it seemed as if every problem in the book was being thrown at them, just because it could be. She ran a frustrated hand through her hair and spoke.

"Well, if it's hardball that's coming into play, then it's what we're going to do," she said. "Tell Novak we're going to need a meeting at least two days before the trial starts, so we can talk to Judge Donnelly, because she's probably not going to like this any more than any of us."

"Anything else you want me to do?" Connie asked, and Amanda nodded.  
"If you would, get a hold of Anna for me," she said. "Tell her that something's come up, and I have an idea I'm going to put before Branch but that I'd like her to call me as soon as it's convenient for her, so I can give her the rundown."

* * *

She stared at the white-colored stick in her hands and wanted to cry, though whether it was because of elation or misery, she wasn't sure. The blue lines had appeared, clear as day. There was no doubting anymore exactly whether or not that this was exactly what was wrong with her, if one could have called it 'wrong' at all…which she certainly didn't.

The problem, however, wasn't her. Anna ran a hand over her face and stared back down at the stick she still held. The lines were still there, no changes. Her cell phone was sitting on the bathroom sink. Now it started to ring, and she reached for it, flipping it open with a free, shaking hand.

"Hello?"

"Anna? It's Connie. You have a minute, or is this not a good time?"

She hesitated, and then answered. "Yeah, I have a minute. What's up?"

On the other side of the line, Connie bit her lip before going on. "Amanda wanted me to call you," she said. "Apparently, she's now got an idea that she wants to put in front of Branch but something else came up, and she'd like you to call her when it's convenient for you."

"What kind of idea?" Anna asked, warily, discarding the stick in the bathroom's trash can and rising slowly to her feet from where she'd been on the ground.

"Something involving what we're pushing at Galinet," said Connie, reluctantly. "Don't worry, it'll involve prison for the rest of her life, but it's just something to get her to cooperate and give up her accomplice."

"Has anyone bothered to say anything to Jack about this?" Anna asked, reaching for a rubber band on the sink and tying her hair back.

"No," said Connie, "Figured I'd give him a call, too, but he wasn't answering his apartment phone or his cell phone. D'you have any idea where he is?"

The sad part about this, Anna thought, was that she really didn't. Rebecca, she knew, was asleep upstairs in the room that had been designated as hers, but she hadn't seen much of Jack over the past couple of days. It was almost like he was avoiding her.

"Actually, I don't," she said. "I'll try and call him, see if I can't relay the message, is that all right?"

"Yeah, that's fine," said Connie, "I'll let Amanda know that you're going to talk to him. Is there anything you need while I'm still here on the line or are you guys all right for now?"

"We're…" Anna paused for a moment and then went on, not altogether sure that she was giving the right answer. "We're fine for now, but thanks anyways. I'll talk to you later, then?"

"Sure thing," said Connie. "Call me if you think of anything."

And then she hung up. Anna flipped the phone shut and ran another hand over her face, feeling somewhat overwhelmed, now, and at the same time, extremely happy. A few minutes passed, and she walked out of the bathroom, flipping the phone open again and hitting what had become the second number on speed dial.

Trevor answered on the second ring. "What's up?" he asked. Anna gave a faint smile, even though she knew he couldn't see her.

"If I were to say the words 'blue lines' to you," she said, "What would you think I was talking about?"  
"The police," said Trevor. "Did you pick up another case involving them, or are you not talking about them at all?"

"Not talking about them at all," Anna said, lightly. "Any other guesses or is that it?"  
"Shirts, ties, shoelaces…" Trevor trailed off and shook his head. "Anna, come on. What's going on?"

"Blue's not really a boy's color anymore, now, is it?" Anna asked, and heard a clattering sound on the other ending of the line. A few seconds later, Trevor's voice came back.

"You're joking," he said. Anna shook her head, quickly, and then remembered again that he couldn't see her.

"Nope," she said, "I'm not. I've taken three of them and the results have come back the same every time. Haven't been to a doctor yet to find out how far along, though."

"Anna…" Trevor cut himself off for a split second and then went on. "Well, this is wonderful news for you. I take it that's why you haven't been feeling well lately?"

"Most likely," Anna said, cheerfully. "I can still come in if I need to, though."

"We'll play it by ear," said Trevor. "Does Jack know yet?"

Silence. Anna fiddled with the watch she was wearing. "No," she said, slowly. "He doesn't. I…haven't really had a chance to talk to him, and in any case, I just found out myself."

"You need to tell him, Anna," said Trevor, "It'll only make it worse if you don't say anything and he has to find out the hard way."

"You're the only other one who knows," said Anna. "If you say anything, I'll be forced to make you disappear."

"I wouldn't do that to you. But I wouldn't say anything to Danielle just yet. I hate to think she'd say anything, but she and Jack are about as close as you and I are, so to speak."

"Yeah, I know. Don't worry." Anna trailed off and then went on. "I will tell him, I swear."

"Well, I would hope so," said Trevor. There was silence for what seemed like forever and then he went on. "Just...if he walks…"  
"I'll call you," said Anna, "You know I will."

And then she hung up.

* * *

They had pulled the Special Victims Unit, which was why, far from being asleep on Staten Island like Anna thought she was, Rebecca was sitting in the 16th precinct, in an interview room, waiting. She knew the only reason the so-called sex crimes unit had been pulled was because she'd been…violated, but she didn't want to talk about it.

When the interview room door opened, she jumped. She didn't know why she'd agreed to talk to these two detectives, other than the fact that the ones at the two-seven had their hands full with murder cases and the upcoming trial and really had no time to go chasing after someone that rightfully belonged to SVU, anyway. The faces were unfamiliar but friendly enough, and for some reason, Rebecca found herself at ease.

"Hope we haven't kept you waiting long," said the woman, who'd been the first to walk in. "I'm Detective Benson; that's my partner, Detective Stabler. You feeling all right?"

Rebecca nodded, even though she really didn't. Reliving this all over again was the _last_ thing that she wanted to do, but if it meant they'd find this guy…She swallowed, nervously, and stared at the surface of the table.

"I know this isn't going to be easy for you, but anything you can tell us at this point will help," said Benson's voice, but Rebecca didn't look up.

"Don't remember much," she said, and really didn't. "I…it was just…" She trailed off. "Everyone still thinks I made it up."

This time, the other detective's voice. "Who?"  
"The press. When I got back…it was like they were trying to set me up, making it look like I'd only pulled some kind of stunt because of all the crap that was going on with my dad, but why would I do something like that?"

"You wouldn't," said Benson's voice, again. "We know that. They ought to know better, too, but we can't always control what they say."

"It did happen," said Rebecca, insistently, defiantly. "I wouldn't lie about being tied to a damn bed and violated at some twisted bastard's pleasure, whenever the hell he wanted me."

The bitter, angry note was unexpected. Had she really spent so long pretending that it didn't happen since speaking to Detective Cassady at the two-seven that she was really starting to think that it wasn't? The room started to swim. She closed her eyes. Why had she waited so long to do this?

"Let's start from the beginning," said the second detective's voice again, the man that Benson had referred to as Detective Stabler. "Did it start when you were taken, or after?"

"After. She…the person who took me…Don't know her name…she said if I pulled anything stupid, she'd have to punish me, like if I tried to get away, but I did, and…that was what happened."

"She had an accomplice, then," said Benson, and Rebecca nodded, her eyes still closed.

"She never did anything herself, she always made him do it," she replied. "I already identified her at the other precinct."

"You told them that you never saw his face," Stabler remarked, from the other side of the room, or so Rebecca thought, she couldn't see him. "Was he wearing some kind of mask?"

And here it was. If she lied here, like she had at the two-seven, and to the ADA's when they had asked, there was no chance they'd ever close this.

"No," she said, finally, and opened her eyes to stare at the palms over hands, which had suddenly started to hurt.

She had been clenching her fists so tightly that she had finally drawn blood.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Wow, two in a row. I think my muse is officially back now, people. **

* * *

"You can't possibly be serious." Erin looked up from the files that had been shoved at her and shook her head. "Life in prison for crimes in which you have no physical evidence to back up any claims that my client had anything to do with. This is ridiculous."

She shoved the files back at Amanda, who scowled at her. "Your client confessed, Ms. Fallon, whether you like it or not," she said, flatly. "It was admissible. Detectives Green and Cassidy had read her the rights. Even without the physical evidence, your client is never going to see the light of day again."  
"Are you threatening her?"

"No. I'm stating mere fact. I could have the crime labs pull all the evidence from all the murders and go over it with a fine toothed comb if I wanted to, and odds are, something your client left behind would turn up."

Branch had authorized this so called deal. Life in prison in exchange for taking the death penalty off the table. Rebecca McCoy wouldn't have to testify and Galinet would be behind bars. The problem, however was that without Galinet's cooperation, they would not get her accomplice.

"You've still got to be kidding me," said Erin. "If you expect to give up the person who was helping her, for life in prison, there is something seriously wrong here. We're not going to give something serious without being given something serious in return."  
"Does your client have a death wish, Ms. Fallon?" Amanda's patience was gone; her voice was like ice now, and Erin moved back, more out of surprise than anything else as the other woman went on. "Without this in place, your client is facing death row. She murdered a police officer in cold blood, and if you think the city of New York is going to stand for that, you have another thing coming."

"I hardly expect the city to stand for one of their officers being murdered, but for heaven's sake, Amanda, this is ridiculous."

"Oh, really. And I suppose that it was ridiculous that she had the presence of mind to not only find an accomplice but push him to do things that I won't mention here?"

"She didn't push him to do anything. He was a willing accomplice, from what I've been told."

"And what makes you think I'm going to take your client for her word? She's already lied enough, Erin, the game is up. If she continues to lie, I will have no choice but to pull this deal off the table. The District Attorney's office is not going to deal with people who won't cooperate with us."

"You make it sound like a witch hunt."

"We take care of our own, Erin, and you know it. This is no witch hunt, it's a call to bring someone to justice, nothing more."

Silence. Erin scowled in Amanda's direction and shook her head as she rose to her feet. "This conversation is over," she said, and moved to leave the conference room. At the last second, she turned back.

"Just so you know, the sex crimes bureau of your dear office needs to learn that loose lips can sink a case. Casey Novak's little underlings let slip that Rebecca McCoy admitted she lied to the police when they first interviewed her about her ordeal."

"Leave," said Amanda, flatly. "Now, before I do something we're both going to regret."

Erin left, smirking faintly, but the expression disappeared as soon as the conference door closed behind her. Sometimes she hated being a defense attorney.

The worst part about it was pretending to have to find some kind of twisted joy in anything that could pull the prosecution's case apart…especially when the person they were representing was a nameless face that could have been anyone in the world.

* * *

She'd led them to where she'd been held. In all honesty, the two SVU detectives were surprised that she remembered, given that it had been so long, but she had led them there, before taking off, telling them that if they needed her, she would be on Staten Island.

"You know, I heard from the two-seven that she's not exactly acting the way anyone would expect her to, given the circumstances." Elliot raised a hand to shield his eyes from the sun that was glaring down at him, his partner and the CSU techs that had shown up, and went on. "Any thoughts?"  
"Don't start." Olivia looked at him over her sunglasses, a move which reminded her of Munch enough that she wanted to laugh, but didn't. "Not every rape victim has the same reaction, Elliot, you should know that by now."  
"Well, I do," he said. "I just find it a little odd that she could lie to them and yet tell us everything. D'you think there's maybe something she didn't mention?"

"There's almost always something, and it's usually up to us to figure that out," said Olivia. 'What's your problem with this one?"

"I don't have a problem with this one. I'm just thinking that some things don't fit. Casey says that with Rebecca's testimony we should be able to nail the guy, if we can find him. She never heard his name."

"Yeah, well, there's only one guy in this city that looks exactly like the description she gave us, and it won't be that hard to find him, we've got alerts out all over the city," said Olivia. "Why d'you think it is that she didn't tell everything to the two-seven?"  
Elliot shrugs. "Probably the same reason one of my girls wouldn't tell everything to our precinct," he said. Olivia glanced at him with raised eyebrows, having had taken off her sunglasses as they walked into the house.

"Ok, shoot," she said. "Why wouldn't they? They've known us all for years."

"Not that easy," said Elliot, shaking his head. "I think the reason Rebecca didn't say anything is because she knew that those were the detectives who work with her father every day, and she didn't want them to be able to say anything. It's…her way of sparing him from knowing that she's…not really a child anymore."  
"She's 24, according to the record," said Olivia, "She wasn't a child anyway."

"Liv…sometimes it's really obvious that you don't have kids. No matter how old they get, you're always going to think that they're a kid, because that's how you keep seeing them."

Silence. Olivia mulled this over for a moment and then nodded. "Ok, so she didn't say anything to the two-seven because they work with her dad. But why would she talk to us?"

"Because we might work with the DA's office, but we don't work with Jack McCoy," said Elliot. "Simple as that. We're less likely to mention to him exactly what was done to him."  
"Detectives," said a voice, that both of them recognized as belonging to one of the CSU techs, "I think we might've just found something."

The two partners exchanged glances and then walked over. Before them, Ryan O'Halloran knelt on the floor, next to what looked to be a silver locket on the floor.

"Did we hear anything about missing jewelry?" he asked. Olivia nodded.

"Rebecca told us that she was missing her locket, but she didn't know what had been done with it. It got torn off while she was…here," she said.

Ryan rose to his feet. "I think we just found it," he said. "It'll have to stay with us for evidence, but I think we might be able to get something from it."

"Hair, blood maybe?" Elliot asked. "She fought him. Medical reports said there were defensive wounds."

"You know who took her in for the initial exam?" Ryan asked.

"The detectives at the two-seven took her," said Olivia. "Specifically Nina Cassady. We can talk to her, see what else we can find from their half of the investigation."

* * *

He'd gone back. And at the beginning, he'd cursed himself, but by the time it had all gone by, he was, oddly enough, comfortable. With himself, with the situation, and…everything else.

Kelly stirred beside him, and he looked down at her, momentarily distracted by her copper colored hair.

"Penny for your thoughts?" she asked, drowsily, and Jack looked away, out the window, because he'd reached out and pulled the shades open to let the sun in. It was the middle of the day, and he had no idea what was going on with the case, for what felt like the first time since it had begun, but he knew it wasn't, really.

"Just thinking about everything," he said, without looking back at her. "The case, all of this…"

"This being you and me," said Kelly, and then, "You know, Liz always used to tell me it'd be a given that you and I would end up at each other's throats."

And they had been, in more ways than one. Feeling guilty yet again, Jack sat up and reached for the shirt he'd discarded earlier on when he'd fallen into the bed beside her, to sleep.

"Then how did we end up here, again?" he asked, barely aware that he was speaking. "At the beginning?"

"A new beginning, maybe," said Kelly, and sat up, shaking her head as she looked at him. "This isn't what you want."

It was more of a question than the statement it sounded like. Jack wondered for a long moment how it had gotten from a simple moment of trying to comfort her in the wake of the storm to something like this.

"I don't know," he said, and really didn't. Things had definitely gotten a lot more confusing that he could've ever thought they would, and now they were both left with no idea if there was any way back.

"She still hasn't talked to me, y'know," Kelly remarked. "I almost tried to call her the other day, but I think it'd be best if I kept my distance."  
It was strange, though, Jack thought. He was the one that had gone nine years without talking to his only child, and yet it seemed to be him that Rebecca was closer to, rather than her mother. It almost bothered him.

"I think that Staten Island's done good for her," he commented. "She told me once before all this got started that she got tired of Manhattan sometimes."

"Everyone does," said Kelly. "Why d'you think you have that place in the Bronx you always go to?"  
He'd taken her there once, he remembered, when things were ok between them, and they weren't wishing secretly that the other would die. Of course she would know about it.

"What is this?" he asked, finally. "What is this…thing we're doing, and why? Why now?"

"I don't know," said Kelly. "I don't know any more than you do, but…I know how you're feeling."

"You aren't the one going behind someone's back."

"You weren't the only one having an affair when we split up."

The revelation shocked him, probably more than it should have. It was almost ridiculous, how much this one little statement had thrown him for a sudden loop. Suddenly restless, Jack got up, and started to pace the length of the room, because at the moment, there was nothing else to do.

"Who?" he asked, and she looked away.

"Ben," she answered, simply, and he stared at her, because he knew exactly who she was talking about.

"Guess we both have our share of secrets," he said finally. "Why didn't you say anything?"

"Because I was too busy blaming you for pushing me towards him, the same way Becky used to tell me that she hated you for not talking to her after Claire died," came the reply. "Because I didn't want to admit that I was doing something wrong, and you'd already admitted to fooling around with Erin and I didn't see the point."

Silence. Jack stopped pacing and looked at her, directly at her, and noticed that the sun was falling onto her hair the way it always did and making it seem like it was glowing, like she was glowing, and it used to have an effect on him, but now…now, there was nothing.

"This can't go on," he said, almost inaudibly, surprised that he could hear himself. "I won't do this to her, Kelly, I won't."

"Looks like you've finally come to your senses. I was wondering when that was going to happen," said Kelly, but she wasn't sarcastic, wasn't bitter, and if he didn't know better, he'd have thought that he'd heard a note of relief, but maybe there was one, and he just wasn't hearing it because he didn't want to. Or maybe he was hearing it because he did.

"You knew this wasn't going to keep going, didn't you?" he asked, and Kelly nodded.

"Yeah," she said. "I was just waiting for you to figure it out." She trailed off and sighed, leaning back against the headboard. "If you think that makes me some kind of whore, for letting you in, then go ahead and think it, but sooner or later, whether I did or not, you'd have come to the same conclusion."

And he knew he would, even without her saying it, because he had known all along that there was someone waiting for him, out on the island, and hadn't cared, more out of his own selfish desires than anything else.

So he turned, and grabbed his keys from the dresser near the bedroom door, and left without another word.


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Hey, guess what? My muse is back, finally! Really sorry about the delay, people, but life gets in the way, as I'm sure you're all aware of. Hopefully the next chapter won't be too far away. Oh, and for the record: Brittany Stone is meant to be about four years older than Rebecca is. **

* * *

Danielle Melnick was, to put it shortly, not amused. She had picked up a case of her own, which wasn't the source of her annoyance. No…the source sat right in front of her. 

"You can't," she said, flatly, looking up from her computer. Jack gave her a look.

"Why not?" he demanded. "I can't stand just sitting there and knowing that I…"

"In all the years I've known you, I have never known you to willingly admit to something like this," Danielle said, exasperated. "Why now?"

"Because I'm tired of lying."

"Well, that's what you get for going behind her back in the first place."

"Danielle, you aren't helping."

"I'm not trying to help. What I'm trying to do is tell you that if you tell her, she's going to leave." Danielle paused for a moment and then went on. "Jack, honestly, in this case, what Anna doesn't know isn't going to hurt her."

"But you know how Kelly can get," said Jack, "If she says anything…"

"Then you face it. You know as well as anyone else that you've got a reputation, deal with it."

"How? I don't want her to leave."

"Well, I won't say that you don't deserve it. She waited a long time before she finally got the nerve to take up with you. But you're too damn restless for your own good."

"Are you enjoying this, or is it just me?"

"It's just you. I don't want to see this happening, but you just stuck me in the middle of it all and honestly, I don't appreciate it."

"I didn't know who else to go to. The trial starts in two days, and everyone in the office is too busy."

"You know, if Anna asks me what's going on with you, I'm under no obligation not to tell her."

"I know. I just needed to talk."

Silence. Danielle looked at her computer again and sighed. "You've dug an awful big hole this time," she said. Jack gave her a pained look.

"I know that, too." He trailed off for a moment and then went on. "Do you know what's going on with her, though? She seems…happier, almost."

At this, Danielle offered up a faint smile but shook her head. "I do know, but it isn't my place to tell you," she said. "Anything else?"

"Are you coming to the trial?"

"You know I am if I can, and damned if I don't hand in my license if that jury's idiot enough not to convict."

"I can't imagine you not in a courtroom," said Jack dryly. Danielle laughed.

"Neither can I, honestly," she said. "But I will be there. I think Kelly will be, too, and Trevor, and presumably, Anna is coming with you."

"She is," said Jack, and trailed off for a long moment before speaking again. "You know, Erin's being throwing stuff at Amanda about Becky and the fact that she lied at the two-seven."

"Amanda can handle Erin and if she doesn't, then I will," Danielle said flatly, "Becky has the right not to say anything if she doesn't want to."

"But she told SVU everything. Why would she do that?"

"Because, Jack," said Danielle, "Those detectives aren't the ones that work with you every single day. She doesn't want you to know what happened to her."

"But she knows she can tell me anything…"

"Not that. Anything but that. It's more complicated than you might think."

"I don't really want to think about it."

"Then don't."

Another silence. Jack wondered for a moment whether or not he should say anything, but before he could, Danielle spoke.

"You know, I haven't known Anna as long as I've known you, but in all that time, I don't think I've ever seen either of you happier," she said. Jack sighed.

"It's already been established that I'm not going to say anything," he said, "Even though I think that it shouldn't be kept a secret."

"Some things just aren't meant to be told," said Danielle. "I don't like it, either, but there's nothing we can do about it, and I refuse to see her hurt, especially by you."

It sounded like a warning. Jack ignored this and leaned forward in the chair that he had occupied.

"She picked up a case of her own, y'know. I think she's getting bored."

"Of course she is. We all spend our lives in and out of a courtroom and we've all been out of one for so long that I'm not really surprised."

"D'you think anything will every return to normal again?"

"No. I really don't. Things have changed too much for it to ever really be the only definition of normal. But I do think that they'll slow down when it's all over."

"Well, I guess that's better than nothing."

* * *

"Maybe she didn't really have an accomplice, and she's just good at imitating voices." 

"I don't think she could've done this on her own."

CSU had turned up and address book. For all the planning that Tara Galinet had done, she'd finally been caught up in her own game. The two-seven was preoccupied with trial preparations, which left Elliot and Olivia to go through it.

"Kit turned up evidence that Galinet couldn't have done it herself," Elliot continued, from where he'd left off. "Any ideas why some of the names in here are highlighted?"

"Let me look…" Olivia leaned down over her partner's shoulder and frowned. "They match the names of the victims that Green gave us."

"Great. An address book turned hit list." A piece of paper sticking up from the back caught Elliot's attention and he pulled it out. "A color code. The ones highlighted in red are the victims."

"Blue is the people that she was looking to go after, then," said Olivia, and looked at the list, frowning. "But what's green? It's not on there."

"Something she doesn't want us to know about," said Elliot. "Ryan Taglien. A lawyer?"

"Galinet's being represented by Erin Fallon, also known as the second ex-Mrs. McCoy," said Olivia.

"Well, how the hell does that work? Talk about a conflict of interest." Elliot trailed off and then after a moment went on. "Taglien's still out there. All of these other people are still at risk."

"You think he has a list, too?"

"He's got to, but Galinet confessed, so I don't really see a point."

"Since when is there a point to murder?" Olivia looked down at the list again and sighed. "Is there an address for him?"  
"No. At least Galinet was that smart. What else did the two-seven give us?"

"Nothing much. Anything else has to do with the murders. Rebecca didn't tell them much."

"This seems a lot more complicated than it should be."

"Well, since when is anything ever easy?" Olivia sat down at her own desk and then spoke again. "Nina Cassady told me that she found Galinet by switching around the letters in the alias she was using."  
"What are the odds that we could do that again?" Elliot asked, and Olivia shrugged.

'I don't know, but it's always worth a shot."  
"Let's try it out then."

* * *

"So, how's the case coming?" 

Anna looked up at the sound of Trevor's voice and made a face as he walked into her office.

"Remind me to shoot you for making me partner this is way too much work," she replied.

"Do you want me to handle some of it?" Trevor asked, and Anna shook her head.

"No, I can handle it," she said. "I'm just kind of tired, is all. You need anything?"  
"Well, Danielle called me because Kelly Monahan called her and she wants the four of us to meet up."

"Right now?"

"Anna, it's two in the afternoon. Have you eaten at all today?"

"I'm trying to prepare an affirmative defense so that I'm not rushing when it gets close to trial."

"Well, it can wait and if need be, I'll help you."

Anna gave an exasperated sigh. "If you're going to coddle me, I'm going to be annoyed with you," she said, but rose to her feet anyway.

Trevor shook his head at her. "I'm not trying to coddle you," he said, "But I will make sure that you don't run yourself into the ground. Shall we go?"

They did. The place they went to was halfway between their building and the one where Kelly and Danielle worked. They were already there when Trevor and Anna showed up.

"Suppose we're not all too weighed down that we can't meet up," said Kelly mildly. She had just gone back to working in the office, Danielle had said, Anna thought, and said nothing as she sat down. Danielle gave Kelly a look that Anna didn't notice, but Trevor did, and said nothing about it.

"Any of you have trial dates yet?" he asked, after a moment, to break the silence.

"Set for the same time as Galinet's trail begins," said Danielle. "I just found out. It was the only available date that Judge Bradley had."

"Still waiting," said Anna, "What about you, Kelly?"

"Haven't picked up a new case yet. Probably will when all of this is over." Kelly trailed off and after a few moments, went on again. "Any idea how long Galinet's trial is due to last?"  
"Depends on how long Erin plans on drawing it out; she's famous for that," said Danielle. "Hopefully, she'll remember that she has a heart and decide to let this one drop once she figures out she doesn't have a case."

Anna snorted. "She turned down the deal Amanda Fellowes offered her; apparently Galinet would rather take her chances at trial."

"Idiot move," said Trevor, "High-stakes case like this, she'd have been smart to take it."

"Amanda's determined to see her fry," said Danielle, "I won't say that I don't agree."

"I don't think any of us would agree with not wanting her to fry." Kelly took a sip from the cup in front of her and made a face as her cell phone rang. She got up.

"I'll be right back," she said, and then was gone. This left Anna lone with Trevor and Danielle, both of whom stared at her, and she stared back.

"What?" she asked. "It's already awkward enough sitting here while I'm pregnant with her ex-husband's baby."

"Anna, have you even told him yet?" Trevor asked, but Anna shook her head.

"I'm not sure he needs to hear that on top of everything else," she said. Danielle gave her an incredulous look.

"Are you joking?" she demanded. "Anna, I know it's still early, but sooner or later, you'll start showing, an dif you haven't said anything…"

"Just let me worry about it," said Anna, cutting her off. "I'll tell him. Just…not now."

"Not now what?" Kelly reappeared, just in time to have heard this last comment. Danielle sighed.

"It's nothing. Something concerning the defense Anna's working on. That's all."

"Oh." Kelly sat back down where she had been, and ran an idle finger over the rim of her glass. "Anything else that we need to discuss?"

"Not that I can think of," said Trevor, "Any other news from the DA's office, though? "

"So much for nothing," said Anna. "Other than the trial, no. Amanda thinks that she might be replaced as Homicide bureau chief, though."

"By who?" Danielle asked. Anna shrugged.

"I'm not sure. She didn't say. Someone from the Major Crimes bureau, I think."

"Amazing how we all know so much more about the DA's office now than we ever did before," said Trevor, dryly. "Of all the things I never thought I'd worry about…"

* * *

But the same things that Trevor thought he'd never worry about were the same things that Connie Rubirosa was currently worried about. And she was less than amused. 

"Your honor, this is ridiculous. Ms. Galinet was arrested, she was informed of her rights…I don't see the issue," she said.

"Not only did my client not know that Kelly Monahan was acting as an agent of the police, she was coerced into a confession," Erin said bluntly.

Silence. Elizabeth Donnelly eyed both lawyers in front of her for a moment and then spoke.

"Explain," she said. Connie glared in Erin's direction.

"Ms. Galinet's only claim to being coerced is that she was 'afraid' of Detective Green," she said. "She would have confessed whether or not he'd been in the room."

"If I had been treated the way she was at arrest, I would be afraid, too," Erin retorted. Elizabeth looked over at her.

"Is your client going to issue a complaint of police brutality against Detective Green, Ms. Fallon?"

"Not at this time, Your Honor."

"Then I resent the implications that you're making. Why, then, is your client afraid of him?"

"For the record, I don't stand with her views for one second, regardless of the fact that she's my client," said Erin. "Her reasoning is that he is predisposed to violence."

"On what grounds?" Connie demanded. "The fact that he isn't white? Your Honor, this is the most idiotic thing I've ever heard…"

"I'm inclined to agree with you," said Elizabeth. "Ms. Fallon, has your client informed you that those are her specific reasons for feeling as if she were coerced?"

"Yes, Your Honor," said Erin, "She has, and like I said, I strongly disagree with her."

"Well, in that case, the confession is in, and by default, so is the arrest," said Elizabeth. "You would do well, Ms. Fallon, to inform your client that her issues with people of a different race will not come into my courtroom."

The silence that fell told both Connie and Erin that they had been dismissed, and so they turned and left the chambers.

"Your client," said Connie, "Is only trying a last ditch attempt to save herself, and it is _not_ going to work."

"Yes, I told her as much, but she didn't want to hear it," said Erin. "I wouldn't have offered up that reasoning otherwise; I think she's nuts."

"Well, you're running with mental disease or defect as a defense, so that doesn't altogether surprise me," said Connie.

"That reminds me," said Erin, and pulled an all-too-familiar blue packet out of her pocket "I'm filing a motion for a hearing to have her evaluated by a shrink to see if she's fit for trial."

"You won't have to bother if you agree to let her be seen by one of ours."  
"Who?"

"Most likely Elizabeth Olivet."

"I'll see what I can do."

* * *

Somehow, telling SVU everything about what had happened had made her feel as if she were losing control all over again. She had taken her refuge on Staten Island, and it was there that she remained, communicating with the world that wasn't Staten Island through the phone. 

"The trial starts like, the day after tomorrow," said Rebecca, to Brittany Stone, who sat in Manhattan on the other side of the line.

"Breathe, maybe. I don't know. Never thought it would happen, you know?" came the reply. Rebecca sighed.

"I don't get it," she said. "Both my dad and your dad are prosecutors, and yet nothing's ever happened until now. Why?"  
It was a good question, Brittany thought. As it was, she wasn't altogether sure that she had an answer. "I don't know," she said, again. "Maybe someone just decided the people were ruining their lives."

"They ruined their own lives. What does it have to do with you, or me? We're not the ones putting them away."

Good point, Brittany mused, but said nothing about it. "You know, my dad told me once that if anything were to happen, it would be more likely to happen to me," she remarked.

"Well, that's an awful thing for Ben to say," said Rebecca. "Why would he tell you that?"

"I asked him the same thing," said Brittan. "And he told me that sometimes these people are so convinced that the state and by default the prosecutors, are so out to get them, so out to hurt them, that by the time they leave, the only thing they can think about is trying to find a way to hurt the one who put them away as much as possible."

"And that way would be their families," said Rebecca, and gave a frustrated sigh. "It makes sense, but at the same time, it doesn't."

"Well, hey. Our dads are lawyers. Since when does anything make sense?" Brittany asked in reply.

This remark drew a half-hearted smile from Rebecca that she knew Brittany couldn't see, but didn't particularly care. "So what happens if it doesn't really seem like the prosecutor's been hurt? Then what?"

"What do you mean?" Brittany asked, slowly. "You're not saying what I think you're saying, are you?"

"I don't know what I'm saying," said Rebecca. "I do, but then I don't, and it's all one really big mess right now. I'm not sure. Dad's not talking to me, Anna says he's got stuff to do in Manhattan, and I know she wants to talk to me, but it's like she's afraid to or something."  
"She's a defense attorney, probably doesn't want to overstep her boundaries," said Brittany. "That's the only reason I can think of. There's a lot of stuff going on. Maybe everyone's just trying to figure it out."

Silence. Brittany had a point, and Rebecca knew it, but that didn't mean she had to like it, and in all honesty, she didn't. Things were complicated, all right, but if anyone should have been trying to figure it all out, it should have been her. And yet it wasn't.

"You still haven't answered my question," she said, finally. "What happens if they don't end up hurting their target at all?"


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: And another update. Sorry about the delay. I've been working on so many things that it's getting a little weird, but there you have it. In any case, happy reading. **

* * *

The trial began. Any deal that Connie and Amanda could have thought of that would have still been acceptable, Galinet had turned down. She was determined to have her day in court. The good things was that so far, Rebecca wouldn't have to testify…yet. A small bit of good news in the midst of everything else.

The side of the courtroom that was behind the prosecutor's table was full. Elizabeth Donnelly had banned the media from her courtroom, but that didn't stop a good number of people from coming anyway. They weren't looking for media attention anyway. All they looked for was a conviction.

They sat in a row, too. Danielle had handed her case off to another associate in her firm. Jamie had cleared her calendar just to be able to be there. Trevor's beginning date hadn't been announced, and Kelly hadn't taken up a new case, officially. Anna didn't have a beginning date, either, and Jack was stuck somewhere in between wanting to work and not wanting to.

This, Erin Fallon mused, was the problem. As Amanda finished making opening statements, she got up as the other woman sat down.

"Ladies and gentlemen of the jury," she said. "I ask you one question. Where is the evidence?"

In the gallery, Jack looked at Anna, frowning. "She's doing it again," he said, quietly. "Damn it."  
"Doing what?" Anna asked. He sighed.

"Erin's favorite game to play is making the jury think that even with a confession, the prosecutor has no case," he said. "In this case, she wants to make it seem like there is no evidence, but there is."  
"It just points to you," said Anna. "So, what d'you think will happen?"

"Hopefully they tune her out, but odds are that they won't, which pretty much means we're in for a long ride."  
Silence fell. Jack said nothing more and Anna knew better than to push. So they left it at that, and listened to Erin. When she was finished, the first witness was called.

"Character witness," said Danielle. "They'll try and dirty everyone involved except Galinet."  
"Of course they will," said Jack, dryly. "What matters is whether or not it actually works."

"Well, even if there's no physical evidence now, the confession is still in. SVU and the two-seven are still working, so something might turn up." said Jamie. She was looking at Erin with an annoyed expression on her face. "She's just like Neil is."  
"Well, they're partners in the same firm, no wonder," said Trevor dryly. "Who is this witness, anyway?"  
"One of Galinet's former colleagues from the school she used to teach at," said Kelly. "Amanda mentioned it."

The only one missing from the proceedings was Rebecca. None of those currently involved in conversation could blame her, but the truth was that Jack and Anna had left her to sleep in on Staten Island. She had informed them the night before that barring her having to testify, she didn't want to be there, and so they had come without her. It almost made it easier to talk, Jack thought, and felt guilty. It shouldn't have been easy. Honestly, it wasn't.

"What else did Amanda mention?" Danielle asked. Kelly sighed.

"Not much. You all know how it works. She can't tell us much until the trial is over." she said.

"Sometimes I wish the rules weren't so strict, otherwise we might get something out of Elizabeth," said Jamie, more to herself than anyone else, though they all agreed.

"…and in all that time, have you ever known Ms. Galinet to be a violent person?"

Erin's voice broke into their conversation and all of them turned to look at the witness on the stand. She hesitated. Erin turned back to look at them and scowled.

"Your Honor, I object to the blatant intimidation tactics that our dear prosecutor and her friends are using," she said bluntly.

"I resent that implication," Amanda said icily, "I am doing no such thing, and neither are they."  
"Then why, pray tell," said Erin, evenly, "Does my witness seem afraid to answer the question?"  
"Ms. Fallon, if you honestly think that being looked at by Mr. McCoy or anyone else is your witness's problem, then maybe you should have blindfolded her."  
"That's enough." Elizabeth's voice broke into the conversation, but she had to bite her lip to keep from laughing as she went on. "Counselors, approach."  
They did, both of them glaring at each other. Erin was the first to speak.

"If Ms. Fellowes and her colleagues can't keep from trying to intimidate witnesses, I move that she be removed from the case," she said.

"Is it a crime to look at people now?" Amanda asked sarcastically. "Your Honor, we're doing none of what Ms. Fallon would like to think we're doing. There is no need to remove me from the case."  
"This case has been all over the news for quite some time. Ms. Fellowes and the entire row behind her are obviously here for one reason," said Erin.

"Of course they are," said Elizabeth, "And it's not to intimidate your witnesses. The motion to remove ADA Fellowes and/or ADA Rubirosa from the case is denied. Step back."

* * *

After the first day, they split up and went their separate ways. Most of them, anyway. Danielle and Kelly and Trevor were the only ones that went off on their own. Amanda and Connie walked off with Jamie, and Anna went with Jack.

"You all right?" The silence between them was grating on Anna's nerves, and so she spoke to break it. Jack gave her a sideways look.

"I don't know," he said. "I just…Erin can talk a good case, and if she gets the jury to believe that there's reasonable doubt…"  
"The police are still looking for physical evidence. They're bound to find something."  
She had a point, and Jack knew it. The police were still looking. But it didn't really help, knowing this.

"You know, it's almost easier to talk about all this when Becky's not around," he remarked after a while. "It…doesn't feel right."  
"No, I can't imagine that it would," said Anna. "You want to head out to the island?"  
Jack shook his head. "No," he said. "No, not yet. I just…I want to walk."  
In all honesty, Anna didn't, but she ignored this fact and shrugged. "Fine by me," she said. "Anywhere in particular?"  
No answer came. She waited, but when Jack still said nothing, she decided it was pointless. When he turned, suddenly, she followed, and knew where they were going.

"District Attorney's office?" she asked, quietly, and he sighed, nodding.

"Been away too long," he said. "I know I left, but…"  
"It's almost like you didn't," said Anna. "I get it."

Jack stopped in his tracks, then, and turned to look at her. "You know, I've spent my whole life trying to uphold the law, and then something like this happens, and I…I don't know what to do anymore."  
Silence. For once, Anna didn't know what to tell him, and then she reached for his hand.

"Well, I'll tell you one thing. Giving up is not an option."  
"I know."

"Then what do you want to do?"

"I'm not sure."  
Listening to him, Anna thought, one could almost tell that something inside of him had snapped, and he was struggling to hold onto what little seemed to be left. She let him tug her gently to stand beside him rather than in front of him, and both of them ignored the people walking around as he slid an arm around her waist. They started walking again.

"You think you'll ever go back?" Anna asked after a while and Jack looked down at her.

"I'm not sure," he said. "Part of me wants to, but at the same time, I just want to stay away."

"Could always try playing on my side of the aisle."  
"My prosecutor side begs to differ."  
Anna laughed. "I figured."  
They continued to walk. Soon, they had reached the building that housed the District Attorney's office.

"Now that I'm here, I'm not sure I want to go in. I was just here this morning," said Jack.

"Well, Amanda says the office is open anytime," said Anna. Jack sighed.

"I know," he said. "I guess it just doesn't feel right, knowing it belongs to her now."

Anna gave him an amused look. "Any more rumors about her being replaced?"  
"Well, I heard they're looking to have Michael Cutter come in when this trial is over."

"Sending Amanda back to her own bureau, then?"  
"So I've heard." Jack pulled the door to the building open and walked in after Anna. "I've also heard Branch is still thinking to retire."  
"Well, of course he is. Heaven only knows the man wants time with his wife," said Anna, nonchalantly. Jack looked at her with raised eyebrows as they headed upstairs.

"What do you know about all that?" he asked. Anna shook her head.

"Nothing."  
"I'll bet."

* * *

"Taylor Galinet." Olivia's voice startled Elliot out of his concentration and he looked over at her.

"What?" he asked. She gave him an exasperated look.

"Remember that little theory we had about switching letters around?" she asked, and when he nodded, she went on. "I just finished. Ryan Taglien is Tara Galinet's older brother."

"Her accomplice?" Elliot asked, Olivia nodded.

"I'm thinking he is. Sure fits the description Rebecca gave us."

"You let the two-seven know?"  
"Just about to. I figure that they should be in on it."

"I do, too." Elliot leaned back in his seat and went on. "Two-seven talked to him; he said he had nothing to do with anything."  
"Of course he did. Place where Rebecca was found, it's still sealed. We might be able to find something to nail him."  
"Well, then, let's go pick him up."

* * *

They did. And the first thing that Taylor Galinet did was lawyer up, which meant that they couldn't touch him. At least, not until counsel appeared, in the form of Neil Gorton, and the first thing he did was ask exactly what evidence they thought they had.

"Evidence means nothing in this case at the moment, Mr. Gorton," said Casey, "I'm sure you're aware that we're considering this all premeditated."  
"I am, Ms. Novak, but I'm sure you're aware that if this goes to trial, I intend to prove that my client is a victim of his sister's insanity," Neil replied.

Casey snorted. "Your client was a willing participant in not only helping his baby sister set a DA up for murder, but in kidnapping Rebecca McCoy. You can't possibly tell me that Tara was the one who raped her."  
"What you have, Ms. Novak, is no evidence, and a witness too traumatized to testify." said Neil.

"You have got to be kidding me," Casey said incredulously. "It isn't up to Rebecca whether or not to press charges; whether she testifies or not means nothing."  
"It means everything; if you don't have evidence or a witness, you have no case," said Neil, evenly. "I'm assuming my client is under arrest?"  
"He is," said Casey, "He'll be arraigned in the morning."  
"Who is the arraignment judge, then?"  
"Jamie Ross."  
Startled, Neil looked over at Casey with raised eyebrows. "You're sure?"  
"Yes, I'm sure," said Casey, looking over at him suspiciously. "Why?"  
"Let's just say that things should get interesting. This meeting is over."  
Casey got to her feet. "Let me know when you come to your senses."


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: And I think here's where things hit the fan, people. Here's to hoping there'll be another update soon after this. **

* * *

The thing about clearing calendars, Jamie thought, was that sooner or later, someone always managed to screw it up and schedule something. Tara Galinet's trial was continuing, and yet there she was, sitting in arraignment court.

"Docket number 64056, the People v. Taylor Galinet. Charges are kidnapping in the first degree and rape in the first degree," said a voice, catching Jamie's attention, and she looked up.

"The people on bail, Ms. Novak?" she asked, glancing at the redheaded prosecutor that had been tapped to handle this latest arraignment. Casey looked back at her.

"The people ask for remand, Your Honor," she said. "We feel that the defendant is likely to become a flight risk."  
"That's ridiculous," said Neil, "My client has a job here, not to mention family. He has no reason to leave."  
"Other than the fact that he might be convicted on these charges," Casey shot back. "I'd say that's a pretty good reason to leave."

"I'm inclined to agree with the prosecution," Jamie remarked, breaking in before Neil could retort. "However, considering that the defendant isn't facing capital charges, I'm afraid bail has to be granted. Give me a number, Ms. Novak."

"Anything the court sees fit will suffice for the people, Your Honor," said Casey. Jamie sighed.

"All right, then," she said. "Bail is set at $250,000, cash or bond. Next case."

* * *

Afterward, when she was finished with everything on her own arraignment docket for that day, she found herself heading towards chambers, not really expecting to see anyone waiting for her, but sure enough, Neil was there.

"You know I can't talk to you about it," she said flatly. "What do you want?"

"To talk, unless it's been written into law as a crime," Neil replied, evenly. "You know, there are a million problems with you being the one to arraign my client."  
"Take it up with someone else, then. I don't want to hear it," said Jamie. "If you're only here to cause problems, then leave."  
"You know you shouldn't be involved in this any more than you already have been. Wasn't presiding over Jack McCoy's trial enough for you?"  
"Damn it, Neil, I'm not getting into this argument with you. Honestly, I'd have loved to have remanded your client, but the charges didn't merit it."  
"Well, you got what you wanted out of it, anyway, didn't you, Jamie? It'll take a few days before that kind of money can be raised within his family to get him out."  
"If it keeps a criminal off the streets, then so be it. You know as well as I do that considering the charges, no judge would have let him out on his own recognizance, never mind me."  
Silence. After a moment, Neil spoke. "You know, a judge still hasn't been drawn for my client's trial, if Ms. Novak can get past her grand jury."

"I'm sure that she'll be able to," said Jamie. "You can't win every case. I should think you'd have learned that by now."  
Neil gave her a look. "I have learned it," he said. "I've also learned that it's innocent until proven guilty, or do you run things differently in your courtroom?"  
Jamie glared back at him. "Don't you dare accuse me of improprieties in my courtroom," she said icily. "There's a reason why you've never drawn me as a trial judge, Neil, but if turns out that I'm drawn this time, then so be it."  
"Are you saying that you won't take yourself off of the case?"  
"I'm saying that I think I know how to keep my personal feelings out of it. So, yeah, I guess I am saying that I won't take myself off, not that it's any of your business."

"It is if I know you have reason to be prejudiced against my client."  
"I'm not prejudiced against anyone. I don't see why you're involved, anyway. What is it about this that's so important to you?"

"I was asked to take on a case. That's what's important. That, and proving that my client had nothing to do with any of it."  
"I don't want to hear it. This conversation's gone far enough as it is. If you're trying to get it to the point where I get dragged in front of a disciplinary committee, I suggest you watch it, because I could do the same to you."  
"Not without proof that I've actually done something."  
"Don't start with me." They'd walked into Jamie's office. Now she pulled off the robes she was wearing and reached for the coat she'd left on the back of her chair that morning. "If you have nothing better to do than sit here and try to talk to me about this, you should leave."

But Neil didn't. "Do you really think it's going to end with this?" he asked. "Assuming the prosecution gets the convictions they're looking for?"  
Jamie frowned. "Are you threatening me?" she asked, but Neil shook his head.

"No," he said. "I'm just asking if you really know what you're getting into now that everything's been set in motion."  
Jamie gave him a look. "Believe it or not, I can take care of myself."

* * *

Rebecca had been talked into leaving Staten Island. The funny thing about this, she thought, was that over the past little while, the island had become like her new home. Going back to Maine didn't feel like an option anymore. Or rather, going back to live didn't seem like an option. She had the feeling that when she did go back, it would be to move all her things back to the city…back to the place she'd always really considered home. The funny thing about that was that before now, it hadn't hit her how much she'd missed being close to everything she knew.

Brittany was waiting outside her apartment building when Rebecca finally got there, which was a good thing, because she hadn't really felt like waiting for someone to answer. Upon seeing the older woman, a half-hearted smile crossed her face, and the two exchanged hugs as Brittany pulled the main building door open.

"I was starting to wonder if you were going to show up," Brittany remarked. "Everyone else is already here. Oh, and there's a new girl, too."  
Figures, Rebecca thought. It seemed that there was always someone new to meet. But for now, she wouldn't worry about it. It felt good to be actually going out and doing something.

"So, what're the latest rumors going around the DA's office?" she asked, as they headed for the stairs, rather than the elevator. Brittany looked over at her.

"Promise you won't tell your dad just yet?" she asked, and Rebecca gave her a suspicious look.

"Only if you tell me what's up," she said in reply. "Seriously, though, Brittany, what'd you hear?"

"Well, Arthur Branch is looking to retire soon, just as the campaigning starts again. He's not running."

"And what does this have to do with my dad?" Rebecca asked, slowly. "You're not saying what I think…?"  
"I'm just saying what I heard. Rumor has it that at some point before he actually leaves, Branch is going to try and talk your dad in to taking the run for District Attorney."  
A run for District Attorney. Rebecca paused in her tracks for a long moment and then continued on, taking the stairs two at a time so that she could catch up with Brittany, who was almost at the floor her apartment was on.

"I don't think it'll work," she said. "Dad resigned when all of this stuff started up again. I don't think he'd go back so soon."  
Brittany shrugged. "Hey, you never know," she said. "I think it'd be awesome if your dad made DA, but that's just me."  
"Yes, seeing as your dad left the DA's office and went on to become a law professor," said Rebecca. "Talk about normal hours."  
Brittany gave her a sideways look. "You wouldn't have a problem if your dad ran for DA, would you?"  
Rebecca shook her head. "Honestly, no," she said. "Everything's been so damn focused on me lately that it feels like no one's paying attention to anyone else, least of all themselves, and I wish it wasn't like that, but there's not really anything I can do about it."  
"Heard they nailed the second guy," said Brittany, and Rebecca nodded, reaching for the necklace she was wearing and fiddling with it.

"They did," she said. "I don't know when that trial's going to begin. I'm just hoping I won't have to testify."

She wondered, then, if any victims before her had had the same reaction that she'd had. A feeling of numbness, and a bout of lying to the police about what had happened before finally breaking down, giving in and telling them everything. And then suddenly, a feeling of normalcy, as if she was getting her life back, when she knew that at any moment, it could fall apart, just like that.

"If you do have to testify," said Brittany, "Couldn't they just read whatever you told the grand jury and have that be your testimony?"  
"I don't think so," said Rebecca. "The only thing I really talked about in front of the grand jury was the kidnapping itself and that was the first person. They could use it for the first trial, but not for the second one."

"I'm sure they'll figure something out," said Brittany, and then, "Now what'd I do with my keys?"

* * *

"You know, I would have thought that watching you walk out on me again would have done it for me, but I guess not."  
"This is a mistake, and you know it. I shouldn't be here. We shouldn't be doing this. Not again."

"Well, you're just a sucker for punishment, then, aren't you?" Kelly trailed off and stared up at the ceiling, watching the shadows drift across the flat surface. "Does she know you're here?"  
"No."

And there was that guilt again, Jack thought, and damned if he wasn't starting to turn into his father, even now, after all these years of swearing up and down that it wasn't going to happen.

"You know, she's going to figure it out sooner or later, what you're really doing in Manhattan." Kelly remarked, when he said nothing else, and he turned his head to look at her.

"What is this, anyway?" he asked. "Some kind of twisted relationship that only comes to be when things get to the point where we don't think we can handle it anymore?"  
"I'm not the one who's committed to someone else." Kelly replied. "I don't know what this is."

"Who said I was committed to anyone?" Jack asked, and immediately felt more guilty than he already had been as he went on. "Take this for what it is and nothing more."

"How am I supposed to do that if neither of us know what it is?" Kelly asked dryly. "You never could keep to one person at a time, could you?"  
Silence. She had a point, and he knew it, and he hated it, too. "You're not helping," he said finally. "I can't do this."  
"It's a bit late for that one, isn't it?" Kelly sat up, drawing the sheets with her and sighing. "I find it ironic that we can manage to stay away from each other for a certain period of time, and yet we somehow end up right back where we started."  
"Where we started was in a normal relationship that wasn't anything like this whole friends with benefits thing," Jack said mildly. "There. We have a name for it."  
"You haven't changed a bit. Always with a reason why you're doing something. Do you ever think that the reasons why you do something might be the wrong ones?"  
It was a good question, Jack thought, and avoided Kelly's gaze as he mulled it over. Danielle had been right. He'd really gotten himself into it this time, and there was definitely no getting out of it without someone getting hurt.

"She's our daughter," he said finally. "Whatever I've been doing over the course of all the time this has been going on, not including this, it's because I want to see the people who hurt her go to prison."  
"Or to hell, but you'll settle for whatever you can get, won't you?" said Kelly. "Things don't always turn out the way they're supposed to be."  
"If they did, then things wouldn't have happened like this," said Jack. "Becky wouldn't have gotten hurt, you and I wouldn't be doing this, and there would be nothing to worry about."  
"Says you. There's always something to worry about." Kelly pushed the covers away from her and got up, reaching down for the shirt he'd discarded earlier and pulling it on. "You want coffee or anything?"  
It was just like a one-night stand, Jack thought then, sarcastically, and the truth was, that was exactly what it was. It meant nothing. Just a way to escape everything that was happening. He sat up and looked over at Kelly for a moment before sighing.

"Actually, I do," he said. "If you don't mind."

Kelly shook her head, and started to leave the room. "Your pants are on the other side of the bed."  
And then she was gone, and the door closed behind her. The hallway outside the room was dark. She flipped a switch, and almost immediately, it was flooded with light. She made her way down the hall, and turned, into the kitchen, turning the lights on in there as well, and going to start a pot of coffee. As she pulled open the refrigerator, one of the two cell phones on the counter started to ring, and she reached for it, without looking to see if it was actually hers.

"Hello?"

On the other side of the line, Anna nearly dropped her own cell phone, startled at the sound of the familiar voice that had answered.

"Kelly?"


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: And the fallout...I'm still trying to figure things out, so bear with me, if you will. **

* * *

Trevor's beginning date had been announced as what would be the seventh day of the trial. Considering the fact that it was only the fourth day, he still had the chance to hand it off to someone else to handle, but the truth was that there wasn't really anyone to give it to. Or so he thought. He'd gone into the office during the break for lunch, and hadn't expected anyone to need to talk to him, and then his own office door came slamming open.

"What case are you handling right now?" Anna demanded, and he looked at her, startled.

"Whoa," he said, "Slow down for a minute. Why do you want to know what case I'm handling?"  
"Because I just do, all right?" Anna replied flatly. "Are you going to tell me, or not?"  
"I'm handling a murder trial," said Trevor. "I start in three days. Now are you going to tell me the real reason why you're asking?"  
"Because my trial was supposed to start in two days, and I handed it off to someone else, and now I'm wishing that I hadn't," said Anna. "Are you still looking to sit in on Galinet's trial?"  
"Yes," said Trevor, "Aren't you?"  
Anna closed the office door, with a force that wasn't really necessary, causing it to slam. Trevor looked at it and then at her for a long moment before speaking.

"All right," he said, "I think I've had about enough of this. What's going on here, Anna?"  
"Oh, nothing," said Anna, sarcastically. "Only that I refuse to be in the same room as Jack McCoy, ever again, never mind having to actually speak to the man."  
Silence. For a moment, Trevor didn't know what to say to this, and then, a possibility hit him. "You told him, didn't you?"

"No," said Anna. "I didn't get the chance to tell him. What I did get the chance to do was call him two nights ago, only to have Kelly answer his cell phone."  
"What's wrong with that?" asked Trevor. "I've seen their phones, they've got the same one. If they were side by side, it would have just been an honest mistake."  
"I don't think so. Why, pray tell, would his phone have been sitting next to hers at one-thirty in the morning?"  
"You called him that late at night?"  
"Yeah, I did, because he told me he'd be out to the island from Manhattan before it got too late, and when he wasn't, I got worried, so I call, and this is what happens." Anna trailed off, looking furious. "I can't handle sitting there next to him in court. I won't do it."  
"And I suppose you want to know if I'll hand off my case to you, and sit in so you can know what's going on without actually having to be there?" Trevor asked. Anna sighed.

"I know it's a huge favor to ask, Trevor, but I can't…I can't just sit there with him, knowing he's been stringing me along for all this time."  
"You want me to deck him for you?"  
"If I knew it wouldn't get you nailed for assault, yes, but since it more than likely will, no. Just let me take your case, and we'll take it from there, all right?"  
Another silence. Trevor leaned back in his chair and shook his head. "I really ought to hit him, Anna, for doing this to you," he said. "In the meantime, however, I'll settle for letting you handle the case."  
"I owe you," said Anna, a look of obvious relief crossing over her face as she sank down into one of the chairs in front of Trevor's desk. She paused and then went on. "How much of an idiot do you think I am?"  
"I don't think you're an idiot at all," said Trevor, flatly. "It isn't your fault that this happened, no matter what he tries to tell you."  
"He hasn't tried to tell me anything, or at least, anything that I've heard. I told him that Rebecca's perfectly welcome to stay out on the island, but he shouldn't bother coming back."  
"So you haven't spoken to him in two days."  
"No, I haven't, and I'm not going to, either." Anna looked down at her middle and sighed. "How am I supposed to do this?"

"Do what? Have a baby?" Trevor asked, and then, "You wait nine months, and when you go into labor, you go to the hospital."  
"That's not what I meant. I always figured that when I had the chance to tell him that I was pregnant, everything would be fine, and he'd stay with me, and we'd be able to raise this kid together, but now that's all been shot to hell."  
"But you haven't told him," said Trevor. "So what are you going to do about it now?"  
"Honestly, I don't know. But…I don't think I can do it. I don't think I can go through with it."

* * *

To put it shortly, Erin was far from being amused. News had just come to her that SVU had nailed her client's older brother, and seeing as Tara had told her little of anything, she was starting to feel as if now was the time to get some definite answers. And so she had come here, to the prison, to get exactly what she was looking for. She sat in an empty interview room for about five minutes before they finally brought Tara in.

"You," said Tara at once, "Had better find a way to get my brother out of this mess the police have gotten him into."  
"His case will be handled by another lawyer from my firm," said Erin. "What I want from you is a few answers. I don't like being caught off guard."  
"I've already told you everything. We tried to set McCoy up, and when it got to the point where the cops were starting to figure it out, I took his kid."  
"And your brother's being charged with helping you do that, and on top of it, raping her. Did you know anything about that second part?"  
"No."  
But it was said in such a way that Erin knew that Tara knew everything and wasn't saying.

"If you don't want to cooperate with me, how the hell am I supposed to defend you?" she demanded. "I need to know what the hell is going on here, so I can actually do my job."  
"What you need to know has already been told to you," said Tara. "I see no point in telling you anything more."  
"Then I suppose you won't mind hearing that the police are going through all the evidence again from the last murder that you committed, to see if they can't tack anything else onto what your brother's already facing."  
"What is that supposed to mean?" Tara demanded, and Erin gave her a look.

"It means that the Manhattan Special Victims Unit has closed another one of their cases," she said, bluntly. "That cop you murdered, your brother did something to her, and sooner or later, they're going to know about it."

"That's my brother's problem, not mine. I'm sure your firm can find a way to get out of that one."  
"No one likes to see a cop murdered, Tara, I'll tell you that right now. If you think that anyone's going to go easy on either one of you for the last murder, you're wrong. The prosecutor's got you up on murder one charges. Do you know what that means?"  
"A needle in my arm if they can prove I actually had anything to do with what happened to her, and life for my brother. What are you thinking of doing?"  
"Nothing illegal, if that's what you're hinting at. I can't possibly defend you if I don't know the truth about what really happened. About your motives."  
"I've already been examined by a shrink and pronounced fit for trial. What more do you need to know?"  
"Anything you can give me. I'm presenting a not guilty by reason of mental disease or defect defense, Tara. If you're in there acting like you're as sane as I am…"  
"Then it doesn't help you. But not everyone with mental problems acts like they have the said problems."  
"You'd do well not to sit there in the courtroom with that smug look on your face, like you've managed to do exactly what you were aiming for. Jack McCoy's not in prison, and he's never going to be."  
"You sound as if you've had a personal relationship with him."

Erin rolled her eyes. "Never mind what my relationship with Mr. McCoy is or was," she said bluntly. "What I need to know is everything that happened. What you did, what you were aiming for, and why you did it."  
"You're in for a long story, then."  
"I'll deal with it. Now talk."

* * *

"You've really gone and done it this time, Kelly."  
If there was one thing that Danielle hated, it was being stuck in the middle of whatever was going on between any of her friends, and this…well, this definitely took the cake.

"I haven't done anything," said Kelly, "It was him. You know as well as I do that none of it would have happened if he could stick to one person at a time."  
"You're not exactly blameless," said Danielle, "You could have told him to leave, but did you?"  
"So I might still have feelings for the guy. Sue me. What does it matter?" Kelly demanded, getting to her feet and starting to pace the length of Danielle's office. "If she didn't want to know, she didn't have to call."  
"She only called because he told her something and she got worried when it didn't happen," said Danielle, "Can you blame her?"  
"Honestly? No. But why did it have to happen in the middle of all of this? You want to explain that one to me?"  
"There's nothing to explain. Things like this always have the worst time for coming out. You should know that by now."  
Silence. The truth was that Kelly did know, and she didn't like it, either. The feeling of things falling apart had never settled well with her. It hadn't in the beginning, and it definitely didn't now. She gave a frustrated sigh, and ran a tired hand over her face before going on.

"She's pregnant. Did you know that?" she asked finally. "Has she even told him yet?"  
"No, and she's not likely to, now," said Danielle. "Kelly, for heaven's sake, she's already been burned once, and she knew what she was getting into taking up with him, but she didn't think it'd happen."  
Kelly snorted. "She's a lot more naïve than she looks, then, if she really thought it wouldn't," she said. Danielle gave her a look.

"I've already fielded phone calls from her, and Trevor, and Jack this morning, and now I'm dealing with you," she said. "It's not like I haven't heard varying stories of what happened, all right? What I don't get is what you thought you were going to get out of this."  
"I wasn't expecting to get anything. Why do I always have to be looking for something when it involves him?"  
"Because when you left, you took him for half of what he had, without blinking, and on top of that, you got custody of Becky," said Danielle, dryly. "And now he's completely clueless that he's going to have another child, and you know something, Kelly? You might not think it's your fault, but part of it is."  
"I'm not the one who came after him, all right? Don't you dare sit there and look at me like I'm some kind of slut because this happened."  
"I don't think you're a slut. But like I said, this could have ended differently. You could have told him to leave, but you didn't, and it led to this."

"And what the hell am I supposed to do about it, then?" Kelly demanded, finally stopping in her tracks and turning to glare in Danielle's direction. "There _is_ nothing I can do. It was her decision to leave."  
"Just like it was yours, only back then, he broke your heart, and you broke his by sleeping with Ben," said Danielle. "Have you never wondered why Laura left him?"  
"So pretty much it all comes down to me," Kelly said, sarcastically. "That's just great. Do you honestly think I _like_ the fact that all of this is happening?"  
Danielle gave an exasperated sigh. "No," she said, "But that doesn't change the fact that you didn't exactly stop it from happening, either."


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: Sorry about the lack of updates. Things have been kinda busy lately, and I've been working on CI and SVU and stuff, but don't worry. I haven't given up on Jack and Anna yet. Anyway...here ya go. **

* * *

The funny thing about this latest incident was that it wasn't really funny in the first place, and had managed to split the little group of defenders and prosecutors into two sides. Most of them, with the exception of Kelly, were siding with Anna. Jack couldn't say he blamed them: he did, too. Not that he was ever going to admit that out loud. However, as it was, there was something else for him to worry about entirely.

"I can't," Jamie said furiously, "I won't. Not with him in that courtroom. I refuse to have anything to do with this trial!"

"Wait, what? You're already involved in this trial! What are you talking about?" Jack demanded, startled back into reality by the sound of her voice. Jamie sighed.

"Not Tara's trial," she said, the name coming out more contemptuously than she'd meant it to, not that she cared. "Her brother's. I've just been drawn as a trial judge."  
"And you don't want to preside with Taylor Galinet in the courtroom?" Jack asked, feeling somewhat confused. Jamie sighed again.

"No," she said. "My problem is the fact that my dear ex-husband is Taylor Galinet's lawyer," she said. "I won't take myself off this, because I know I can stay impartial, and Neil's not likely to take himself off, either."  
"Isn't that a conflict of interest, though?" said Jack. "You shouldn't be presiding over the trial if he's the attorney…."  
"Tell that to Casey Novak," said Jamie, dryly. "She's the prosecutor. I'm tempted to think that she knew I'd be named trial judge, but she had no way of knowing."  
"The arraignment judge doesn't often turn up as the trial judge. I suppose it's because Elizabeth's running Tara's trial, and she usually presides over Special Victims cases."  
"That doesn't particularly help, considering. This is even more of a reason for Neil to be a pain in the ass. He actually came around and asked me if I knew what I was doing. He's lucky I didn't smack him."

"Well, so are you, he might have seen fit to charge you with assault," said Jack, shaking his head. "I don't suppose there's anyone else whose calendar is free enough to take it should you decide to remove yourself?"

Jamie shook her head. "Afraid not. The people in this city are too preoccupied with themselves sometimes, I swear," she said. "The courts are a mess right now and this isn't helping."

Silence. Jack turned and focused on a point somewhere out the window; Jamie noticed and shook her head again.

"I'm not blaming you, and I'm certainly not blaming Becky," she said. "All I want is for this to be over, and right now it doesn't seem like there's any end in sight."  
"Of course not," said Jack. "Meanwhile, people that I've known for years would love nothing better than to kill me because I can't keep my hands to myself, and sooner or later, I'm going to be the only one sitting in Elizabeth's courtroom."  
"Amanda and Connie aren't going to let this go anytime soon," said Jamie, "You know that."  
"That doesn't change the fact that they're both annoyed with me. I don't think they'd take it out on me through the case, but still…"  
"You want to make things right." Jamie trailed off and sighed. "You know, she still isn't going to talk to you."  
"I know," said Jack. "That's the problem." He trailed off and sighed. "This would be easier if I had a case of my own to worry about."  
"You do," said Jamie. "You have this one. It's yours whether or not you're prosecuting, because these people not only tried to hurt you, they hurt Becky."  
She had a point, and he knew it, but somehow, it didn't make anything feel any better. "She's not talking to me," he said.

"Still?" Jamie asked, and when he nodded, she shook her head, and leaned back in her seat. "She'll come around. Sooner or later, she'll come around. She can't avoid you forever."

"Before this, we hadn't even talked in nine years, Jamie," said Jack, dryly. "If that's not forever concerning your kid, then I don't know what is."  
"You're talking to a woman who considers a weekend to be forever," said Jamie, and then, "I don't know what I would do if something like this ever happened to Katie."  
Jack offered up a half-hearted smile. "Well, you're the lucky one," he said. "It hasn't."

* * *

The trial was still going on. It seemed that all Erin could do was cast reasonable doubt, and the truth was, reasonable doubt was good enough. All the physical evidence pointed to Jack, as far as it could, and there was nothing that either Connie or Amanda could do about it. As it was, Amanda was being made to cross-examine one of Erin's witnesses, and it was not going well.

"So, in your opinion, Tara Galinet didn't know what she was doing?" she said, skeptically. "Tell me, then, Dr. Rowe, how did she manage to plan it all without anyone finding out?"  
"It's not unheard of. People can lead secret lives for long amounts of time without anyone knowing until something goes wrong."  
"Then, she had a secret life. Why do you think that is?"

"Objection," said Erin, loudly, "Dr. Rowe is hardly an expert on what my client's state of mind was when she started this."  
"Overruled," said Elizabeth, from the bench. "Answer the question, Dr. Rowe."  
Silence, and then a reply. "Judging from what she told me when I spoke with her, I think that her motivations came from being falsely accused of a crime and put on trial."  
"Evidence in the case you speak of pointed to the defendant. The jury saw reasonable doubt. Why would this drive her to come up with something on this scale?"  
"She would have had a desire to get back at the ones she thinks ruined her life. All in all, what I got from my session with her was that she is someone who is not well."  
"Physically or mentally?" Amanda asked.

"Mentally. Ms. Galinet may have been functioning at a normal mental capacity before her first trial, but something has twisted that."  
"And you believe that something was Mr. McCoy."  
"I'm not sure what to believe, and honestly, I don't particularly think the people are all too sure of it, either."  
Annoyed, Amanda turned and headed back to the table, where Connie was. "I have no more questions for this witness, Your Honor," she said, and Elizabeth nodded.

"Dr. Rowe, you are dismissed with the thanks of this court," she said, and then to Erin, "Call your next witness."  
"Something come up?" Amanda asked in an undertone, while Erin started questioning her latest witness. Connie motioned under the table, where her cell phone was hidden from view.

"Olivet sent me a text message," she said. "We might be facing opposition from her. I don't think she really believes Galinet's all that competent to stand trial."

"She wouldn't have told us that she did if she didn't," said Amanda. "Why would she change her mind now?"  
"I don't know," said Connie. "That's what's bothering me. I'm also getting text messages from Danielle and Trevor, they want to know how this is going. What should I tell them?"  
"Tell them that it's going fine, and ask them where Jamie is," said Amanda, "I thought she cleared her calendar?"  
"Judge Ross?" said Connie, and shook her head. "No, she got drawn for Taylor Galinet's trial."  
Amanda snorted, quietly enough that she wouldn't be heard by anyone but Connie. "And Neil Gorton is Taylor's lawyer," she said. "Well. That courtroom should get interesting. When does that trial start?"  
"I don't know, nothing's been said about it. I suppose I can try and find out later today when we're in recess."  
"That would help." Amanda trailed off and looked back at the gallery, towards where Jack was. "He's the only one here."  
"Are you really surprised?" Connie asked. "Everyone's pretty much siding with Anna on this, and I doubt he blames them."  
"Does he know that she's pregnant?"

"No. I don't think she told him, or at least, that's what Danielle told me. I don't think she's going to tell him now."

"The rumor mill on both sides of the aisle moves a lot faster than anyone thinks it does. He'll find out whether she says anything or not."

* * *

"You'll have to testify in his trial. I've tried to find a way so that it wouldn't have to happen, but since you're perfectly fine, other than the obvious, your grand jury testimony can't be read into evidence."

Casey Novak closed her office door behind her and sighed as she went on. "I don't like it any more than you do, but there's no way we can put him away unless you talk to the court."  
"I had the feeling it would end up like this," Rebecca replied, without looking at the older woman. "What do I have to do?"  
"Just tell the court what happened," said Casey. "We have the physical evidence we need to nail him, but unless there's a complainant, we can't do anything."

"Complainant…" Rebecca trailed off and scowled. "I hate that word. It makes it sound like I'm only complaining about what happened, like I'm not actually a victim."  
"A lot of the legal terms like that are meant to seem middle of the road; something about not wanting to inflame anyone's opinion, but it doesn't change the fact that you're a victim," said Casey, "No one is going to dispute that except for the defense."  
"Oh, and what are they going to do?" Rebecca asked, sarcastically. "Prove that I wanted what happened to me? That I wanted to be raped?"  
"They'll try to prove that it was consensual," said Casey, "Not that you wanted to be raped."

"I've seen the media reports, you know," said Rebecca, shaking her head. "They all think the whole kidnapping thing was some stunt to take the pressure off my dad. And you know the stupid thing? He won't even talk to me about it."  
Personal issues, Casey thought, were not what she wanted to deal with right now, not that she didn't have time to listen. Rebecca was the one witness she had in her case so far, and if she didn't want to talk, then Taylor Galinet would walk.

"I'm sure he'll talk to you about it sooner or later," she said, finally. "What I need to know right now is if the media's right."

Rebecca gave her a look. "No," she said, bluntly. "It wasn't. I wouldn't do that. Yeah, I wanted the system to back off my dad, but I could have found other ways to do it."  
She had a point, Casey mused, and sighed, going to sit on the edge of her desk. "I need to know if you told the detectives everything. If you left anything out, now is the time to tell me, because if it comes out from the defense, there's nothing I can do about it."  
"I told them everything I know," said Rebecca. "Everything. The only people I lied to were the detectives at the two-seven, because I didn't want my dad to know about what went on while I was gone."  
"So SVU knows everything and what they've filled me in on is everything that happened. "

"Yes. It is."

Suddenly, she didn't feel like talking anymore. What she wanted to do was take a walk and clear her mind, but she didn't particularly want to go alone. Rebecca looked at the clock and sighed. The District Attorney's office was still a familiar place to her, even if it almost scared her sometimes. She looked back at Casey and spoke again.

"Is that all, or do you need me for anything else?"

* * *

She wondered when she was going to start to show. It hadn't been that long since it had been officially confirmed that she was pregnant, and already, she couldn't wait to tell everyone she came across. As it was, however, only Danielle and Trevor, and Amanda and Connie knew. She couldn't bring herself to tell anyone else.

And staring at her middle wasn't helping. Anna blinked, wondering why she was suddenly fighting back tears, in the middle of a courtroom, because the day was almost over, and all she had to do was make it through five more minutes, and then she could go. She wondered if the prosecutor in this case would ever shut up. It wasn't a prosecutor she recognized, which helped, somewhat.

The feeling of her phone vibrating in her pocket made her jump, but only enough so that the client sitting beside her noticed, but he said nothing, and she drew it out of her pocket, hiding it beneath the table and looking down.

_"Anna, something's come up. You need to call me as soon as you're out of court." _

The message was from Danielle, whom she hadn't actually spoken to since this trial she was running had begun. Frowning slightly, she went to the text messaging screen and wrote back.

_"I've got five minutes, just tell me now. Can't hurt." _

On the other side of the conversation, Danielle looked at her phone as she walked and shook her head before replying.

_"I'm not sure telling you this in court is such a good idea. I'm on the way to Bellevue. Have you heard anything from Amanda or Connie yet?"  
_Court ended. Anna got to her feet and watched her client being led off by the court officers, and then wrote back, quickly.

_"Court just ended. What is it that you need to tell me and why are you on the way to Bellevue?"  
_


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: My muse is on something...and that is all. **

* * *

Amanda's face was just starting to regain its color by the time Anna came sliding into the waiting room at Bellevue, struggling to catch her breath as she spoke.

"What the hell happened?" she demanded, unable to hide the anxious note in her voice. "Danielle wouldn't tell me anything, all she said was that she was coming here and that it had something to do with Jack…"  
"He collapsed in the courtroom," Amanda said quietly, her voice shaking. "We ended about an hour ago, and he was walking out, and then he just…fell."  
"Has anyone said anything yet?" Anna asked, sliding into one of the seats as she went on. "Is Danielle here yet?"  
"Danielle's talking to the doctors again, but they still haven't said anything. They won't tell us who's been named as having power of attorney or anything."  
Power of attorney. A sinking feeling settled over Anna as she remembered a conversation that she and Jack had had a few months ago.

"I have power of attorney," she said, not bothering to hide how upset she was starting to become. "Why won't they say anything?"

"Because they technically can't release anything to anyone who isn't family or doesn't have the authority to know," said Danielle, reappearing in the waiting room just in time to hear Anna's last comment. She turned to face Amanda and Connie. "They still won't say anything."  
"Anna's got power of attorney, she says," said Connie, "Maybe they'll talk to her."  
Silence. Three different pairs of eyes were on her, and then a fourth as Jamie came sliding into the waiting room, having closed her first day of court early upon getting the message from Danielle, who'd passed it to Casey Novak.

There was no getting out of this, not that she wanted to, and so Anna nodded and rose to her feet. "I'll find out what's going on," she said. "You four…if you'd wait?"  
They all nodded. Reassured that they would, Anna disappeared into the hall and wandered down to the nurses' station, where she could see a number of people. One of the doctors cast her an almost annoyed look. She glared back.

"If this is another attempt by that lot in the waiting room to find out what's wrong with Mr. McCoy," he started, and Anna cut him off.

"I happen to have power of attorney for him," she retorted. "If you don't tell me what's going on, I'll have your license."  
"Are you a blood relative?"  
"It doesn't matter. I just told you I have power of attorney, and I can prove it." Yanking the bag she had off of her shoulder, she opened it and pulled out the documentation she'd taken to carrying around with her, just in case something ever happened. The doctor looked it over.

"Well, Ms. Flynn," he said, "It appears that your friend's had a heart attack, and a rather serious one from the looks of it."

"How bad is it?" Anna demanded, at once. "Will there be a need for any kind of surgery?"  
"Not that we've seen so far," came the reply. "We're still looking to see if there'll be any need, but at this point, he still hasn't regained consciousness."  
"Why the hell not?"  
"Loss of consciousness isn't exactly rare when one has a heart attack, Ms. Flynn. If you ask me, your friend is lucky there were people around who recognized the signs of what was happening."  
"Of course he is," said Anna, not aiming for sarcasm, but somehow, it came out that way. "You'll let us know if there's any need for surgery and what not?"  
"Considering you've just proven you have the right to know, then yes. Is there any family that we need to contact?"  
"No, I'll take care of it, but odds are, they already know." Anna trailed off and then turned around, without another word, to head back to the waiting room, her thoughts reeling.

"What happened?" Connie asked at once, and Anna sank into the chair nearest to the door.

"He had a heart attack," she replied, and burst into tears.

* * *

News spread quickly through the courtroom, defense and District Attorney's office rumor mills. Before anyone really knew the real story of what was going on, Anna's cell phone was ringing, and her house phone was ringing, because somehow, everyone and their dog knew that she was the one with power of attorney and they all wanted to know what was going on.

The house on Staten Island had never felt emptier. Rebecca had sought refuge from the barrage of calls with Brittany Stone and Adrina Kincaid, and Anna couldn't blame her. It was starting to feel like everything was falling apart. Just like before. Only this time, it was ten times worse.

The caller ID said "Melnick, Danielle," when Anna finally bothered to look at it and see who was calling her this time. Grateful for a familiar name, she picked the phone up.

"Are you all right?" Danielle asked by way of greeting. "Anna, no one's heard from you since Jack collapsed in the courtroom, why aren't you talking to anyone?"  
"I don't know." She could barely hear herself and it scared her. "Danielle, the doctors told me…they need to do surgery."  
Danielle swore under her breath, and drew in a breath before speaking. "How serious is it, really?"  
"They wouldn't say. I think it's just because they don't want to scare me, but all it's doing is making things worse…"  
"Probably a bypass surgery," said Danielle, "Anna, he'll make it. He's made it this far, you know he'll pull through."  
There were tears sliding down her face again. She wouldn't have noticed it, except for the shuddering breath that escaped her as she ran a tired hand through her hair.

"I can't do this," she said. "I can't do this, Danielle, I just can't, I don't want to do this…"  
The last time she'd sounded so helpless, she'd been sliding to the floor in a locked bathroom, with a cut lip and a black eye, leaning back against the door on the phone with the police. The difference between that time and this one was that on that occasion, she had been hysterical and obviously so. This was a lot worse.

"Anna," said Danielle, "Are you alone right now?"  
Anna nodded, once, and then remembered that Danielle could not see her. "I'm on the island," she said. "I don't want to come into Manhattan. I don't want to deal with this by myself."  
"You aren't going to deal with this by yourself," Danielle told her. "You have me, you have Trevor, you have everyone else. We're not going to let you deal with this on your own."

"He doesn't know," said Anna, a note of desperation in her voice that Danielle picked up on at once. "I was going to tell him and then Kelly answered his damn phone and I was just…so pissed off at him, and I couldn't tell him…."  
"Trevor told me you weren't sure you could still go through with having this baby," Danielle said slowly. Anna shook her head, the tears still coming, faster than they had been moments before.

"I was angry," she said. "I couldn't get rid of this baby, even if I wanted to, Danielle, I couldn't…" She trailed off and went on. "What if he doesn't make it? What if I never get the chance to tell him, then what?"  
"Don't think about it like that," Danielle told her firmly. "Don't you dare. He will make it, and you will tell him and this mess that the lot of us have created will get sorted out. Meanwhile, I am coming out to the island. Don't you dare go anywhere."

* * *

"Your Honor, concerning the circumstances that we find ourselves under, we ask for a continuation until Mr. McCoy is well again."  
Connie's voice shook, but only slightly. She wasn't about to let Erin Fallon know exactly how much this had gotten to everyone, but as was expected, Erin objected.

"This is ridiculous," she said. "My client is guaranteed the right to a speedy trial, and delaying this any further than it already has been…"  
"Considering your client is the one who caused this mess in the first place, she hardly has any right to object," Connie shot back. "The people maintain that the prosecution is unable to go on at the moment, in light of recent developments."  
"How so?" Erin demanded. "Is Amanda Fellowes in a relationship with Jack McCoy as well? You'd have thought that after this latest fiasco he's gotten himself into, he'd have learned better."  
"EADA Fellowes is nothing more than a close friend of Mr. McCoy," Connie retorted, starting to grow annoyed. "She's hardly in any state to continue right now."

"Ms. Fallon is right," said Elizabeth, breaking into the conversation, "Her client is entitled to a speedy trial. Is there no one else up to speed on this case?"

Connie sighed. "The Homicide Bureau of the District Attorney's Office has an incoming EADA who's been informed of the details of the case."  
"Well, then I suggest you inform him that come Monday morning, he'll be sitting first chair," said Elizabeth, "I don't like the circumstances either, Ms. Rubirosa, but the law is clear. The motion for a continuance is denied."  
Well, it was one loss, but at the moment, it didn't matter. Taking this to mean that she and Erin had been dismissed, Connie turned and left, answering her phone as it rang.

"What did Judge Donnelly say?" Amanda asked, by way of greeting. Connie sighed.

"Denied the motion," she said, "Are you in the office?"  
"Yeah, I am," Amanda replied, "Why?"  
"Because you might want to tell Cutter that he's taking over."

* * *

After hanging up with Connie, Amanda noticed that someone had come in and left a note on her desk. She reached for it, wondering what else could possibly go wrong.

_"Ms. Fellowes, I haven't had the chance to speak to you since coming into this bureau, and if you have time, I'd like to do that, at your convenience." _

The note was from Michael Cutter. Amanda snorted.

"At my convenience," she muttered, sarcastically, getting to her feet, "Who does he think he's kidding?"

She wandered out of her office and down the hall, to where she heard Michael had been delegated to. The door was closed. She knocked on it once, and then walked in. The person sitting at the desk turned to look at her.

"I'll assume that you're Amanda Fellowes," he said.

"And I'll assume that you're Michael Cutter, so we're even," said Amanda. "You wanted to talk to me?"  
"Well, not exactly on official terms, yet," Michael stated, but she cut him off.

"Judge Donnelly says that you're to sit first chair in Tara Galinet's trial starting on Monday morning," she said. "What do you know about it?"  
"Branch has already filled me in on what he knows," said Michael, looking startled. "I wasn't aware there was a need for me to take over."  
"Well, there is," said Amanda, "Can I count on you?"

"Of course," Michael replied, somewhat taken aback by her directness. "Monday, you say?"

Amanda sank into the chair in front of the desk and sighed. "I'm sorry," she said. "I know I'm being rude, but all of this, it just…"  
"I understand," said Michael, "So, Monday morning. What time?"

Relieved, Amanda sat up and continued. "Nine o'clock. Let me fill you in on where we are."

* * *

"Jamie?"  
If the sound of the voice startled her, she didn't let it show. She was in chambers and hadn't heard anyone walking in, but apparently, she was more distracted than she'd thought. Looking up, however, didn't help.

"What do you want, Neil?" she asked, closing the folders on her desk. Neil stepped into the room and closed the door behind him.

"I heard about Jack McCoy," he said, "Do you know anything?"  
"Anna called me," Jamie replied, heavily, "The doctors told her there's a need for surgery. He's going in this afternoon."  
It had only been one day. Friday meant the end of the business week for the courts. It was more than likely that Jamie would be sitting in the hospital with everyone else until news came.

"Are you all right?" Neil asked, tentatively, and Jamie gave him a look.

"What makes you think I'm not?" she asked.

"I wasn't trying to imply anything, I just…know you're friends with him and I…" Neil trailed off and didn't go on.

Jamie sighed. "I'm sorry, I probably sound like a total bitch right now, but I just…"  
"I know," said Neil, and somehow did. "Is there anything I can do?"  
Jamie offered up a faint, half-hearted smile. "Not that I can think of," she said. "You have Katie this weekend?"

"I do. Does she knows what's been happening?"  
"Yes. She'll want to know how it goes today. I told her that I would call and let her know."

There was an awkward silence then, in which Neil found himself wondering whether or not it had really been such a good idea to come. After a while, he spoke again.

"Are you on your way to Bellevue?"

"As a matter of fact…" Jamie took off the judge's robes that she was still wearing and hung them up before reaching for her keys. "Katie's still in school. I'm sure no one would object if you wanted to come along."

"I'm not exactly sure that would be proper considering the circumstances we're in."

"You're probably right. I'll let you know how it goes."

"I'll tell Katie to wait for your call."

* * *

They played cards, because they were bored and there was nothing else to do. Hospitals had always scared Rebecca, which was why she hadn't gone. But now she was almost wondering if she should have.

"Any twos?" she asked dryly and Adrina Kincaid shook her head.

"Go fish," she replied, and the, "Why the hell are we playing this?"  
"Because there's nothing better to do," said Brittany, leaning back against the couch and looking towards the phone. It still hadn't rung.

"Actually, there is," said Adrina, "We could go out."

Out. The idea actually seemed appealing, for once, Rebecca thought wryly. It had been a while since she'd been out. Most meetings had been held in Brittany's apartment, because it was convenient for everyone.

"Just us?" she asked, and Adrina shook her head.

"Hell no, that'd be boring, just the three of us, we ought to pull the others out, too."  
Brittany snorted. "I find it somewhat sad that most of our friends are related to lawyers in one way or another."

"Not me," said Rebecca. "Who do you want to call?"  
"Let's see." Adrina flipped her cell phone open and ran through her list. "Robinette's out of town…Brit, you're right here, Becky, you are too…"

Brittany had flipped her cell phone open as well. Rebecca was currently the only one without a phone, considering she'd lost hers when she'd been taken. She had no idea what had happened to it.

"Let's say we just call as many people as we've got on our cell phone lists and see who ends up coming out with us," she said, "Besides, having a big group is best, don't you think?"  
"Yeah," said Rebecca dryly. "That way we'll have witnesses in case anything happens."  
Her sarcasm was not at all lost on Brittany or Adrina, who exchanged glances when she turned and got up to go into the kitchen for a glass of water.

"Hey, y'know, I was just kidding," said Adrina, "We don't really have to go out if you don't want to."

In the kitchen, Rebecca bit back the desire to laugh. "No, it's fine, really," she said. "We can go. It is pretty boring here."

"Well, if you're sure," said Brittany. "We'll just stick to the ones everyone's known for a while, and maybe bring the new people along later."

"That works," said Rebecca, and then, "Any of you heard from Lindy Schiff lately?"


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N: Told ya my muse is on something. In any case, things should start getting interesting again pretty soon. **

* * *

He woke up again on a Saturday afternoon and saw a familiar face.

"Well, and it's nice to see you, too, Jack." Destiny Carmichael eyed the chart in her hand and went on. "You've been out for a while."

"Abbie never mentioned that you work here," said Jack.

"Yes, well, I didn't while she was your assistant," said Destiny. "How are you feeling?"  
"I'm not sure. How long have I been out?"

"Since Thursday's close of court," said Destiny. "Scared the hell out of EADA Fellowes."  
"What day is it?"

"Saturday, and you had bypass surgery yesterday, so you are going nowhere," Destiny replied, firmly.

"I…what?" Jack cast a startled look in her direction, and she sighed.

"You," she said, "Are lucky that you aren't dead. You had a heart attack, which no one actually knew until Thursday night, because the other doctors wouldn't release it to anyone without authority. I only know because I was here when you were brought in."

"Becky hates hospitals," said Jack, "Who was here?"  
"Danielle Melnick, Trevor Langan, Judge Ross, EADA Fellowes, EADA Cutter, Connie Rubirosa and Anna Flynn," said Destiny. "Others have been in and out, including Abbie."  
"So who did they tell?" Jack asked.

"Anna. She has power of attorney for you, apparently," said Destiny. "However, it's family only at the moment."

"Can't you get it to change? I need to talk to her."  
"Jack…" Destiny paused for a moment, and then sighed. "She left as soon as she found out you would be fine."

"Oh."

In all honesty, he wasn't surprised. He blinked, once, to adjust to the light, and Destiny shook her head.

"None of the other nurses are at their station at the moment, and I am your admitting," she said. "If you want to see the others..."  
"I need to talk to Danielle," said Jack, as she trailed off. "Can I?"

* * *

Danielle appeared a few minutes later and closed the door behind her.

"You know, I have a few things to tell you that Anna doesn't think she can tell you herself, so she asked me to do it for her." she said.

"I hardly think that now is the time for a lecture," said Jack, and she shook her head at him.

"It's not a lecture," she said, and came to sit down. "Have you ever noticed the ring Ana wears on her right hand?"  
"Yes. I asked her about it, once, and she wouldn't tell me."  
"She wasn't ready to, but now she thinks you ought to know," said Danielle. "Anna isn't divorced."

"What?"

"Don't you give me that look. You know she'd never have done that."

"Well, if she's not divorced, then…"

"She's widowed. No one else knew before now. She told everyone that she was divorced, because that meant she wouldn't have to deal with it. Not even her sister really knows."

This, Danielle mused, was probably not at all what Destiny had had in mind when she'd said light conversation. But it was now or never.

"Why didn't se say anything?" Jack asked, finally. Danielle sighed.

"Because it happened in a home invasion, and bringing it up only hurts her," she said. "She…found out a few things afterward that didn't make it any better. "

"Does she know you're telling me this?" Jack asked. Danielle nodded.

"Yes, she knows," she said. "She asked me to, because like I said, she didn't think she could on her own."  
"Why?"

"Because what she found out afterward is the same thing she found out when Kelly answered your phone," Danielle said bluntly. "If it's bad enough hearing it from the source, it 's even worse finding out after the person is already gone. Never mind the affairs she'd already caught him in before."

"Then why'd she stay?"

"For the same reason Laura stayed with Ben and you stayed with Kelly after their affair came out."

Silence. Whether or not he liked it, Danielle's point had been made. And it definitely hit home. One of the monitors beeped and he jumped.

"That explains a lot," he said, and Danielle gave him a look.

"Her relationships with other men since then haven't been the greatest. It was like she didn't know what to do with herself, especially after Claire died, and then she took up with you and it seemed like everything was going right for a change."  
"If this is you trying to put me on a guilt trip, it 's working."

"You aren't helping your case any," said Danielle, "What I'm saying is that both of you knew that she was taking a chance on you, and you proved her wrong."  
"I'm not expecting her to forgive me for it, Danielle, so if that's what you're getting at…"  
"It's not. All I'm saying is that you collapsing like that scared her. She doesn't want to lose you, but she's convinced she already has."

"She hasn't even talked to me. How the hell does that work?"

"You know, it might seem easy to you, but it's not to her, all right? And for the record: I don't appreciate being caught in the middle of your battles with everyone else."  
She hadn't meant for the words to come out as bluntly as they had, but they did, and Destiny was going to have a fit if she found out about it. As it was, however, what Danielle wanted to do was make a point, and if this was what it took, then it was what would happen.

"Before you say anything, I know I'm not the only one, and I'm not finished telling you things," she said, before Jack could retort. "There's something else, but I still think Anna should be the one to tell you, and so she will be."  
"So in other words, you're not going to tell me."  
"No, I'm not. I've told you enough for one day. If she really does want you to know, then she'll tell you herself."  
"Who else is here, besides you?"  
At this, a faint, amused look crossed Danielle's face, and she sighed. "Everyone from the little group that seems to have formed across the aisle," she said. "Why? Do you want to talk to any of them?"  
And suddenly, Jack didn't much feel like talking anymore. He shook his head.

"No," he replied, without looking Danielle in the eye, "The only one I want to talk to is her."

* * *

Saturdays were the worst day of the week, next to Sundays. The courts were closed, Trevor had taken to chasing her out of the office on Friday nights, and what she wanted was to work, but no one seemed to want to let her. This did not settle well at all.

"How am I supposed to get anything done if you won't even let me in the damn office?" Anna muttered, over the phone, to Trevor, who rolled his eyes.

"You're supposed to get it all done during the week. The weekends are for you to relax, which you haven't done a lot of, and you're pregnant, which means you need it more than I do."  
"What I need is to be in my office, when I can actually concentrate on something other than what's currently going on."  
"What's currently going on is the only thing you're going to be able to concentrate on in the office, because it has to do with everything."  
"Don't start with me, Trevor, all right? I'm not in the mood."  
"That's funny, I thought you'd have been happy to hear that Jack will be all right."  
Anna gave the phone a look. "You're funny," she told him, sarcastically. "I am happy to hear it. I just don't know if I can handle it."

"So you think it'd have been better if he died?"  
"No. I don't think that at all. I just…need time to think about it all. There's too much on my mind, and I'd rather work than sit around here."  
"Somehow I don't think work is going to help you any."

"And since when do you dictate to me what helps and what doesn't?" Anna asked, irritably. "I already told you. I'm never speaking to him again, and he can deal with it."  
"Have you changed your mind about having the baby, then?" Trevor asked dryly, in reply. "Or is that still up in the air?"  
"No, it's not," Anna retorted, annoyed. "I'm having this baby. Whether or not he finds out about it doesn't matter as of now."  
"Of course it does. He's the kid's father, Anna, the least he deserves is to know that you're pregnant."

"Yeah, well, if Danielle wants to tell him, then she can. If she still insists that I'm the one to tell him, then so be it, but I'm not talking to him."  
"He asked for you, y'know."

Mentioning this, Trevor thought, probably wasn't the best of ideas, but Danielle had called him, and he'd called Anna, and presumably, Anna would call someone else, because that was how it had been working since Thursday night. As it was, Anna wasn't anywhere within arm's reach of him, and so he went on.

"He told Danielle that you were the only one he wanted to talk to, other than her. He won't talk to Amanda, won't talk to Connie…he won't even talk to Judge Ross."  
There was a shocker, Anna mused, wryly. If anyone besides Danielle, she'd expected him to say something to Jamie. She was the only other one she could think of off the top of her head that he'd want to talk to, besides Rebecca. But Rebecca had called her, and said that she'd already been by the hospital with Brittany and Adrina and Lindsay Schiff, because as much as she hated the places, she couldn't stay away.

"Has he said anything to Rebecca yet?" she asked, and Trevor sighed.

"All right, I'm exaggerating. He'll talk to her, but he really did ask for you," he said. "You can't hold this against him forever."  
"You know, when you've been in a relationship where you nail your significant other in numerous affairs before losing him to two idiots in a home invasion, only to find out there was another affair you didn't know about, then you can lecture me," Anna snapped. "I'm not in the mood to deal with this right now."  
She wondered why she was suddenly on the edge of tears and decided that she didn't want to know, because it didn't help. And she wondered why she'd just blurted all of this out to Trevor, when the only one she'd trusted with it thus far was Danielle, and that was only because she hadn't had the heart to tell Jack herself.

Dead silence met this, and after a moment, Trevor spoke. "I thought you were divorced."  
Anna sighed, and ran a frustrated hand through her hair. "I told everyone that so that I wouldn't have to deal with all the questions."  
"The house on Staten Island?"  
Anna slid into one of the chairs in the living room and closed her eyes. "I sued the city," she said. "The police…they didn't exactly believe me when I called 911 and tried to tell someone what was happening, and by the time they showed up…it was too late."  
"Wrongful death?"  
A derisive snort escaped Anna at this point, and she shook her head. "Yeah, wrongful death," she said. "I make enough on my own, so I wonder sometimes why I bothered, especially when I think about what I found out afterwards, but….it hurt."  
"That would explain why you ran away all those months ago, then," said Trevor slowly, and he didn't have to tell her what he was talking about, because she already knew.

"It was me and it was Claire, and it was that, and it was everything else that had happened before," Anna said resignedly. "And I know I was taking a chance by taking up with him in the first place, but I just…I didn't think I'd have to deal with it again."  
"Does anyone else know about this?" Trevor asked, and Anna shook her head, before remembering that he couldn't see this as a reply.

"No," she said, quietly, "At least, no one did before I told Danielle, and I always meant to tell Jack, but somehow, it just…I couldn't."  
"Do you know if she was going to tell him?"  
"I asked her to. I don't know if she did. I haven't talked to her. Have you?"  
"Yes," said Trevor, "I have. She told me she'd just left the hospital, and she wanted me to call and check on you, make sure everything's all right."  
"Everything's fine," said Anna, quietly, even though she wasn't all too sure of it. "Everything's just fine."

* * *

The weekend passed a lot faster than any of them had thought it would, and before any of them knew it, most of them were back in court. It was ten minutes to nine, and Connie slid into her own courtroom, scanning the crowd gathering quickly, for the one other person besides herself that was supposed to be there.

When she found him, she walked over. "Think you're ready to do this?" she asked, and Michael Cutter looked back at her.

"I should think so," he replied, mildly. "Granted, I'm not officially the Homicide Bureau's EADA yet, but I would think it'll be…easy enough."  
Connie snorted. "There's an interesting way to look at it," she said, dryly. "Easy. It hasn't exactly been like that, but I guess it's better than thinking it's impossible."  
"Nothing's impossible if you really think about it. We've come this far, there's no reason to believe that we won't be able to win this case."

"Then we'll just have to see if ADA Novak can manage to wrestle a conviction out of her own jury."  
"That we will."  
"All rise for the Honorable Judge Elizabeth Donnelly…" Court was beginning. The two prosecutors exchanged glances and got to their feet, sitting only when Elizabeth had taken her place.

"Call your witness, Mr. Cutter," she said, and the trial started up again. Michael looked down at the list and then towards the gallery.

"Your Honor, the people call Rebecca McCoy to the stand."


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N: Another update! And I'm thinking Jack is going to talk to Anna sometime soon, but..never mind. I won't give it away. Anyway...carry on! **

* * *

The revelation that Rebecca had given threw the courtroom into considerable chaos. Now, Michael and Connie found themselves in Elizabeth's chambers, opposite Erin, before court had even begun.

"Your Honor, Ms. McCoy's testimony can certainly be counter as enough evidence to add conspiracy to commit murder to the charges," Michael started, but Erin cut him off.

"The people have already indicted my client, and if she is convicted, then she'll be serving enough time as it is. This is just a ploy to make sure that she's convicted for something."  
Silence. Elizabeth eyed all three lawyers and sighed.

"I'm tempted to agree with the defense, Mr. Cutter," she said, "Do the people have any witnesses to this conspiracy besides Rebecca McCoy?"

"The police are still out looking," said Michael.

"So you'd like a continuance." said Elizabeth.

"If it's at all possible. I should like to think that we would be allowed to find anyone else that might be involved."

"How long have the police been looking?"

"Since last night," said Connie, "They're still looking even as we speak."

"How long of a continuance are you looking for?"  
"Your Honor, you can't possibly be considering this!" said Erin. "The people have had their chance!"

"If you know anything, Ms. Fallon, now would be the time to tell us," said Michael. Erin gave him a look.

"I know nothing," she told him. "I swear, if I find out that this is some ploy you've cooked up to railroad my client…" Elizabeth cut her off.

"I would think that the DA's office knows the lines," she said. "The motion for a continuance is granted. Mr. Cutter, the people have until Friday."  
"Thank you, Your Honor." Taking this to mean that they had been dismissed, Michael turned and left and Connie followed.

"Well, that's a relief," he said. "D'you think the police will have anything to us by Friday?"

Connie sighed. "Well, here's to hoping that they will," she said. "Meanwhile, there's another trial going on. Shall we go?"  
"I think we should," said Michael, "No one's been sitting in with Casey and I think she could use the backup."  
"Judge Ross is there."

"True, but I get the feeling that she's got enough on her mind with Gorton."

"Good point."

* * *

The knocking on the office door startled her, but she didn't look up.

"It's open," Anna said, and heard someone walk in. But she was in the middle of something, and continued on.

"You know, I understand if you don't want to look at me, but if you'd at least hear me out, that'd be nice."

Anna looked up and glared. "Why should I?" she asked, dryly. "I already know what I need to know."  
"No, actually, you don't," said Kelly, and Anna gave her a look.

"And d'you mind explaining to me how the hell you think you have the right to come into my office and tell me what you think I need to know?" Anna demanded. "You are the last person that I want to speak to, never mind Jack."  
"I'm not asking you to forgive me for anything."  
"Good, because I'm not going to. Now leave."

"Not until you listen to me."  
This is what you et, Anna thought, then, annoyed. What were you thinking?

"You have five minutes, and then if you don't go, I will call someone to make you, got it?"  
Kelly nodded and came to sit. "Got it," she said. "Five minutes." She trailed off and then went on. "You know, these things happen."  
"Yeah, I've been around the block a time or two," Anna muttered sarcastically. "What do you want me to know, Kelly? I'm not in the mood for games."

"I want you to know, that it wasn't him. It was me."

"He could have told you no."  
"I wouldn't let him. I was falling apart, and I didn't want him to leave, and I know it's not an excuse."

"You're damn straight it's not. But you know what? I don't really care anymore."  
But her voice broke on the last word and Anna knew that Kelly knew that she was lying.

"D'you really think that you're fooling anyone?" Kelly asked, and when Anna didn't answer, she went on. "It didn't mean anything."

"Then why the hell didn't he just tell me? Why did I have to find out from you?" Anna retorted. "Why'd he tell me that he had things to do in Manhattan when the only thing was you?"  
"You went into it with both eyes open."

"That doesn't change a damn thing and you know it."  
"He's the only one who doesn't know that you're pregnant, y'know."  
"And who the hell opened their mouth and told you?"  
Silence. Somewhere along the lines of conversation, Anna had lost track of how long it had been, and found that she didn't care.

"No one had to tell me. I can tell by looking at you. You're careful and you aren't drinking coffee," said Kelly. "You aren't showing but sooner or later, he's going to find out."  
"And what right do you have to lecture me about this?"

"I'm not lecturing, I just…" Kelly trailed off and sighed. "It was why we split up."

"Because you got pregnant?"  
"No. Because I was one day and not the next."

Stunned, Anna sat back in her seat. "You had an abortion? Why?"  
Kelly sighed again. "Because I knew a few things that he didn't, and I didn't want him to know."

"The baby wasn't his?"

"No. But he thought it was, and after I had it done, everything came out anyway."  
"So what are you telling me?"  
"I'm telling you that whatever you're thinking, don't, because I know you are. If you think what happened on Thursday almost killed him, you haven't seen anything yet."  
Another silence. It was awkward, Anna thought, but at the same time, it wasn't.

"You've been talking to Danielle," she said.

"Danielle's been talking to everyone," said Kelly. "Just think about what I told you. You don't have to take my advice, but at least think it over."  
Anna leaned forward again. "Whose was it?" she asked, and Kelly stared at her.

"What?"

"You heard me. You said the baby wasn't his, and that's why you had the abortion, so whose was it, and why didn't you want him to know?"

Kelly looked away. "I don't suppose Danielle's told you anything about Ben Stone," she said, and Anna gaped at her.

"Ben?" she exclaimed. "You're kidding me. It was…"

"Yeah, it was," said Kelly, still without looking at her. "That's why. He knew, but Jack didn't, and it was just a big mess, and then it all came out and there was nothing any of us could do to take it back."

Of course not, Anna thought, then, still staring at the other woman. There was never anything that anyone could do, regardless of what had gone wrong and what was still right.

* * *

"…and how exactly did you discover the identity of my client, Detective?"

If there was one thing that Olivia disliked, it was being poked at by defense attorneys, but the problem with this was that she couldn't tell him off here, because it wasn't an interrogation room.

"We'd heard from the two-seven that his sister had merely changed the letters in her name around to form her alias, Natalie Grant," she said. "There was reason to believe that any one of the contacts in her little address book could have been her accomplice."

"Yes, but up until this point, you had no reason to believe that my client had done anything, isn't that right?" Neil asked in reply. Olivia gave him a look.

"We had reason to believe that he might have been helping his sister," she said. "The name written in Tara Galinet's address book that was his alias was the only one highlighted in a different color from the victims that had already been murdered and the ones that had been tapped to be murdered."  
"What made you so sure that they had been tapped to be murdered by my client and his sister?"  
"The ones in red had already been taken. The ones in yellow were all involved in cases that juries ended up acquitting on, that Jack McCoy prosecuted."  
"And that made you so sure?"

"The two-seven had informed us of a pattern," said Olivia. "That's what made us so sure."  
Neil nodded, slowly, appearing to mull this over, and then spoke again. "And when Ms. McCoy spoke to you, she told you everything that she knew?"  
"Yes, she did."  
"Unlike when she spoke to the two-seven?"  
"What she told us has nothing to do with what she told the two-seven. She gave us what she knew and we closed our case."  
"I have no further questions for this witness," said Neil, and Jamie nodded, looking towards Casey, who shook her head, indicating that she had no more questions, either.

"You may step down, Detective," she said, and Olivia did so, going back into the gallery and sliding into the place next to Nina in the gallery.

"You think we still have a chance?" she asked, in an undertone, and Nina nodded.

"You did fine," she said. "I'm just wondering where our partners are."  
Olivia frowned slightly, leaning back on the bench. "As a matter of fact, so am I."

* * *

While their partners sat in court, Ed and Elliot found themselves standing in the crime lab, glaring at the back of Ryan O'Halloran's head. He turned and glared back at them.

"You know, standing there staring at me isn't going to do the two of you any good," he said. "We're getting pushed by the Major Case Squad, and you know how the brass are about their cases."  
"We don't give a damn about the brass," Ed shot back, "Our EADA's daughter just blurted out in open court that the people who kidnapped her wanted to kill her dad. We need to know if you've found any evidence of other people."  
"The only evidence we have is of Tara Galinet and her brother," said Ryan. "I've told you that already."  
"That doesn't mean your techs haven't missed anything," Elliot said dryly. "You want me to take it to the brass, I will."  
"What makes you think they'll listen to you?" Ryan asked, just as sarcastically. Elliot gave him a look.

"Related to the Chief of D's," he said. "You wanna keep trying me, or do you wanna look?"  
Ryan rolled his eyes, but walked over to where the evidence from Rebecca's scene had been stored.

"I'll look," he said. "I'd rather not face the wrath of anyone related to you." He turned, and Elliot bit back the desire to retort.

"There were unidentified fingerprints," said Ryan, after a moment, "No one thought to run them. Would you like me to do that?"  
"That'd be nice," said Ed, "We'd like to be able to catch whoever's still out there before they have a chance to add murdering a prosecutor to the little list that's going."  
"Heard Jack McCoy's laid up at Bellevue," said Ryan, and Ed shook his head.

"He is," he replied. "Had a heart attack on Thursday right when court let out. Don't know when he's getting out."  
"All this stress can't possibly be good for anyone," said Ryan, and walked over to one of the computers. "This will only take a few minutes."  
"Heard Judge Donnelly's wanting us to find any other witnesses to what Rebecca heard that there might be," said Elliot, and Ed nodded.

"Yeah, she did," he said. "Apparently, Fallon's got her convinced that Rebecca's making stuff up and so she wants to know if anyone else heard it, besides the two defendants."

"Here's to hoping someone did, then. But I doubt Rebecca would lie about something like that," said Elliot.

"Considering all the crap that's been happening? I doubt it, too," said Ed. He turned to look at what Ryan was doing and then went on. "I'm just wishing all this was over."

"Two trials at once for the same thing, pretty much," said Elliot, shaking his head. "This job gets stranger every day."  
"Tell me about it. Makes me wonder why I even signed up in the first place. Homicide's bad enough as is, can't imagine doing what you do."  
"I'd say you get used to it, except for you don't, and once you do, it's time for you to go."  
"All right, Detectives," said Ryan, breaking into their conversation, "I've got you a set of prints."


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N: My muse is being evil again. Hopefully it figures out where it wants to go sometime soon. Until then, here's the latest update. **

* * *

The prints belonged to someone else who was already involved in the case. Since Tara Galinet's trial had been given a continuance, they weren't exactly sure where to find this person, but they knew that sooner or later, they'd figure it out.

"She's probably going to be in the office, trying to figure out what she's going to do next," said Nina, an almost disgusted look on her face. "She knows more than she's letting on."  
"Obviously. If her prints were in the house, she had to have been there at some point," said Olivia, shaking her head. "Office, maybe?"  
The sound of a phone being flipped shut made both women turn, and Elliot looked over at them. "EADA Fellowes says that Erin Fallon just left the District Attorney's office."  
"Did she say where she was headed?" Ed asked.

"Presumably back to her office. She doesn't know anything more than that, other than that Erin came to talk to EADA Cutter about something."  
"Probably about dropping the charges," said Nina. "Hope he told her where to go. You want to take her office, and we'll take the courthouse, in case she decides to go there instead?"  
"Sounds good," said Olivia, and looked at her watch. "We'll let you guys know if we nail her."  
"Same here," Nina replied, and walked off as Ed started in the opposite direction from where the SVU detectives were standing. Elliot glanced at Olivia and sighed.

"Who do we know that works at her office?" he asked, and she flipped open her notebook.

"Danielle Melnick works at the same building," she said. "Not necessarily the same firm, but they'd cross paths every now and then."  
"Think she might have any idea as to where Erin is?"  
"I don't know, but it's always worth a shot. I'll call the DA's office and find out where Ms. Melnick is."

* * *

There wasn't any real need for that, though. Danielle was in her office, watching Erin Fallon pacing back and forth, and half-listening to her.

"A continuance," she said, annoyed. "This has gone on long enough. If the people are really this willing to play legal hardball…"  
"The people are more than likely on a mission to show that Jack isn't the only one who can 'hang 'em high', as some people like to put it," said Danielle. "If they're playing legal hardball, it's because they have to."  
"You really are on their side, aren't you?" Erin demanded. "For the love of heaven, Danielle, if even the defense can't see the lines between them and the prosecution…"  
"You know damn well that Jack and I have been friends for over twenty years, so don't you be giving me that lecture," Danielle said bluntly. "I'm not in the mood for it. If you were looking for a sympathetic ear, you might have gone to Kelly."  
Erin snorted. "What makes you think I would talk to her? She's done enough damage in this mess as it is."  
"I suppose you've heard the news about Anna Flynn, then."  
"I'm not surprised he's gone and gotten her pregnant, honestly. He had to have known, otherwise he wouldn't have pulled that stunt with Kelly."  
"Now you're just jumping to conclusions. He doesn't know. In fact, it's the one rumor going around this city's legal community that he doesn't know about."  
"She hasn't told him, has she?" Erin asked, and shook her head, smirking. "She knows he'll leave."  
"After what happened with Kelly and Ben, d'you really think he'd just up and walk?" Danielle asked sharply. "Honestly, Erin, listen to yourself!"  
"This case has enough twists in it to become a rollercoaster ride," Erin said sarcastically. "If you really think turning a blind eye to it is going to do any good…"  
"If anyone's turned a blind eye to this, it's you," Danielle retorted. "Standing here and trying to sell me on your side of the argument will do nothing."  
"So you believe that Rebecca was telling the truth on the stand, then."  
"And you think she was lying?" Disgusted, Danielle leaned back in her seat and shook her head. "And you wonder why she can't stand you."

Erin gave her an annoyed look. "The only reason why Rebecca doesn't like me is because she assumes that I am the one who broke up her parents' marriage, when in reality, it was Ben."

"Don't blame him just because you couldn't find it in yourself to tell Jack no."  
"Kelly could have told Ben no, and she damn well knows it."

Silence. Erin had a point, and Danielle knew it, and this annoyed her. The phone on her desk rang, and she reached for it. "What?"  
Another round of silence and then, "Well, yes, of course. Send them on up."  
"Clients?" Erin asked, and Danielle sighed.

"You could say that, but you don't have to leave. I'd like your opinion on their case."

* * *

"Erin? You…you're kidding, right?" Jack stared at Amanda in shock and shook his head. "You have to be kidding."  
"I'm afraid not," said Amanda, "Manhattan SVU arrested her and handed her over to the two-seven."  
Jack shook his head again. "I can't believe this," he said. "Of all people…"

"We'll nail her," said Amanda, "I'm back in the courtrooms again, and Connie and I will be trying her."  
"Well, what else have I missed while I've been stuck here?" Jack asked, casting an annoyed look at Destiny as she walked in.

"Don't you be giving me that look, or I won't be releasing you," she said. "You've been here long enough."  
"And here I was thinking I was going to die in this place," said Jack dryly. Destiny rolled her eyes.

"You're not funny," she said. "Anyway, you might have to wait just a little while longer, for release papers to be signed…"  
"By who?" Jack asked. "I technically have nowhere to go, and you said that Abbie would have your head if I stay alone."

"Yes, well, she's gone back to Texas, so she wouldn't exactly know," said Destiny. "And I'm aware that Becky is with Brittany."  
"If needs be, you can stay with me," said Amanda, "I've got room."

"I don't think that'll be a problem," said Destiny, "In the meantime, Jack, no courtrooms for you."

"How long?" he demanded, at once.

"At least another week. If you play me on it, I shall be forced to kill you myself."  
"I thought your oath said you'd do no harm."

"And yours says the truth and nothing but the truth."  
"Damn, you've got me."  
Destiny shook her head. "I mean it, you. Don't be going behind my back, it's for your own good, and Anna's client pled out, so…" She trailed off and shook her head again. "I wasn't supposed to tell you that."  
"What, the pleading out, or the fact that Anna's the one signing for me?" Jack asked.

"Technically both, but really only the last part."

"Is she here?" Amanda asked, and Destiny nodded.

"At the desk filling everything out," she said. "I have rounds to make, so I will be back."

And then she was gone. Amanda looked at Jack and sighed.

"You ok?" she asked, and he nodded.

"Just wasn't aware that she gave a damn," he said, almost bitterly. "I'm not too sure I want to go to Staten Island."

"You're the one who said you wanted to talk to her."

"Yeah, but not like this."

"Are you afraid of what she'll think of you?"  
"You know me too well, Mandy."  
"Sure I do." Amanda looked at her watch and made a face. "I have to go. You can call me if you need anything."

Jack nodded mutely, and she, too, was gone. A few moments later, Anna came wandering in.

"All of the forms are signed," she said, quietly, "If you just want me to drop you off at your place…"

He nodded. "That'd be fine," he said. "If you don't mind."  
"I don't," she said, and so they went.

* * *

His apartment had the feeling of abandonment. Like no one lived there, even though it was quite obvious that someone did. But it didn't feel much like a home. Anna closed the door behind her and wandered into the kitchen as Jack went to sit. Faint strains of music came drifting towards her and she blinked.

The last time she had been there, she'd fallen asleep sitting up on the couch with his head in her lap, because they'd been talking, and it had been the middle of the night. She had been wearing one of his shirts, the same song had been playing, and it was the last time that they had been together. At least three months ago now, though they'd only just recently split up.

"You don't have to stay." Jack's voice caught Anna's attention and she looked up, sharply, because she hadn't noticed him coming into the kitchen.

"If you want me to leave, I will," she said, "I wouldn't want to impose."

The hurt in her voice was unmistakable and she knew it. She reached for the keys she'd dropped on the counter with one hand, the other tugging her jacked closer around her.

"You aren't imposing," said Jack, and Anna gave him a look.

"Couldn't be any more obvious that you don't want me here," she said. "For the love of heaven, McCoy, you either do or you don't, but which one is it?"  
He stared at her, vaguely aware of the music he'd left playing.

"I don't know," he said. "You tell me."  
She smacked him, hard. The sarcasm was a defense mechanism, and she knew it, but she was beyond caring.

"You son of a bitch," she said, angrily. "What the hell do you think this is, huh? What exactly do you take me for?"  
"A lawyer," Jack replied, more than a little bit startled. Anna laughed, but for some reason, the sound scared the hell out of him.

"You know, I'm not one of your ADA bedmates," she said bluntly. "I am a defense attorney. I have kicked your ass in court many times before, and I would kick your ass now, except for the fact that you just got out of the hospital and I am three months pregnant, but you are the biggest asshole that I've ever met!"  
Her voice had risen to a yell, completely drowning out the music, but she didn't really care.

"Yeah, you heard me," she said, to the stunned look on his face. "I'm pregnant. And yes, it's yours, because I haven't been with anyone else, which is more than I can say for you. And you know what else? I don't need you here to raise this child, so tell me now what you want, Jack. Because once I walk out that door, it is over, for good."  
It was quite a different reaction from the one she'd had when their relationship had first begun, before the murders, before the trials, before everything else that had happened since that night. He continued to stare at her, and she stared back at him, waiting for him to say something, anything.

But he didn't, because he couldn't think of anything, and after a while, she shook her head, disgusted.

"That's what I thought," she said, icily, and then she turned and walked out.

The last thing he heard of her was the sound of his apartment door slamming closed.


	19. Chapter 19

**A/N: Lynn...here's the answer to that review you left. You didn't really think I was just gonna let Anna take off, did you? In any case...this chapter is for that review, so thanks for poking my muse. There should be another chapter popping up right after this one. **

* * *

He ran after her. It was the only thing that he could think of to do. And Destiny was probably going to kill him for it, but he was beyond the point of caring. If he lost her now, then it wasn't really going to matter anymore.

She had barely gotten out of the apartment building when he reached the bottom floor, and ran out after her. She didn't notice that he was even there until his hand on her shoulder made her whirl around, looking completely ready to take on whoever it was that had dared to touch her. The look on her face turned annoyed when she realized it was him.

"What do you want now, Jack?" she demanded. "A paternity test? Fine. I know you don't believe me when I say this kid is yours."  
"Why wouldn't I believe you?" Jack asked in reply, before she could gather enough of what remained of her fury to continue. "You've never lied to me before."  
Anna snorted. "Yeah, and it's more than I can say for you," she retorted coldly. "Tell me something, is there anyone else I need to know about or was it only Kelly?"  
"It was only Kelly and it ended a long time ago."  
"Then why did you go back?"

A question that was almost impossible to answer. The truth was, he didn't really know why he'd gone back. Only that there was some reason, somewhere inside of him, and it was one that he'd never really thought about until now.

"I don't know," he said, finally, and Anna shook her head in disbelief.

"You know, I should've just listened when Trevor told me I was getting in over my head, but no. I didn't want to believe him, because I knew you. Or I thought I did. You forget that I watched you with one of my best friends for two years, Jack, and I know you loved her, and if you didn't want this, then _why_ has it carried on so long?"  
"This isn't about Claire."  
"Then what is it about? You want to tell me that? Because I'm sure as hell pretty damn clueless about it."  
Silence. They were standing feet apart, with people walking in between them, some of them listening, some of them merely watching, all of them moving, because no one wanted to get caught in the crossfire.

"It's cold out here," said Jack, "Do you really want to have this conversation on a sidewalk where anyone can hear us?"  
Anna gave him a look. "Don't you dare change the subject on me," she told him. "We're going to have this conversation where I damn well feel like having it, because I am sick and tired of being jerked around, you hear me?"

"It's kind of hard not to," Jack said dryly, and she glared at him.

"You're not funny," she said. "Not in the least. Is this what you do to push people away? Jerk them around for a while and then when it gets serious, act like it's not?"  
"I'm not acting like this isn't serious."

"You could have fooled me." Anna yanked her key out of her pocket and shoved it into the outer door lock. "You're an idiot. You didn't even think to bring your own key out here, did you?"

"No. I left it in the apartment. I wasn't particularly worried about how I was going to get back on."  
"Well, you'd be screwed if I didn't have a key. You'd lose your head if it wasn't screwed on." Anna yanked the door open and held it. "In. Now."  
She reminded him of his mother sometimes, he thought, not that it was a bad thing. There had been times when she'd been able to withstand all the things that had taken place over the course of her life. Danielle's comments came floating into the back of Jack's mind then, quite clearly, and he stepped into the apartment building, glancing behind him to make sure that Anna hadn't taken off on him. She hadn't.

"Keep walking, McCoy," she said, in the no-nonsense voice that told him that until they had figured this out, she was going to remain in lawyer mode, because that was where she was least likely to get hurt. He kept walking. When they reached his apartment, he walked in through the still-open door, and Anna followed, closing it behind him.

"What game are you trying to play?" she demanded, at once. "And I want the truth. Don't you give me the runaround, or I will walk right back out that door, and this time, I won't follow you back."

"I'm not trying to run any sort of games," Jack said flatly. "You're the one who just took off without giving me a chance to answer you one way or the other."  
"I know how to read someone's face. If you don't want this kid, then tell me, and that's fine. But I'm not getting rid of it."  
"I never asked you to. In fact, I wouldn't expect you to, whether or not I wanted a part in this child's life, and damned if I don't!"  
Suddenly he was annoyed, and had somewhat of an idea as to why this was as he went on. "If you'd given me the chance to say something before taking off, I'd have told you that…" He trailed off and looked away. "I know you've heard the stories. Danielle told me Kelly talked to you."  
"If you really think that I would lie to you like that," Anna started, but he cut her off.

"I know you wouldn't. I just told you that out there. But it…Anna, if I knew what to tell you about all this, then I would tell you something, but I do want this child."

Silence. Anna sank into one of the chairs, and stared up at him. "I can't do this," she told him. "I can't just…sit here and know that at any given moment, you're gonna decide you're tired of me and just…"  
So this was what it had come to. You're more like your father than you think you are, said a voice in the back of Jack's head, but he ignored it.

"I wasn't tired of you. I just wasn't thinking. It was the case, and all the effects, and not being the one to try it, and now Destiny's telling me I have to wait another week before I can go into the courtrooms again, and…I don't know."  
"A fish out of water," said Anna, wryly, furiously wiping at her eyes, annoyed with herself for this sudden display of emotion. "So what are we going to do?"  
"I don't want to lose you," Jack said, at once. "If nothing else, Anna, I don't want to lose you again."  
"I don't want to have to sit here and feel like I'm going to lose you to the next person who catches your eye," Anna replied. "That's the only way this is going to work, for both of us."  
She had a point, and he knew it. Suddenly, he found himself overtaken by the desire to get out of this city, only to go to another one.

"You don't have any cases lined up anytime soon, do you?" he asked, and Anna shook her head.

"No," she said, "I just closed my last, didn't Destiny tell you?"  
"How long d'you think it'll take you to go to the island and pack a bag for a few days?"

* * *

Danielle was the only one who knew where Jack and Anna had gone, other than Rebecca, whom they'd informed, though she'd declined to go with them, and neither of them were saying.

"All I'm going to tell you is that they're not in the city," she said to Trevor, as they made their way towards Elizabeth Donnelly's courtroom, where Tara Galinet's trial had resumed.

"I still don't see why Anna couldn't have just called me and told me she was leaving," said Trevor, shaking his head. "Especially with him, of all people."  
Danielle gave him a look. "Anna's free to go wherever she wants, with whomever she wants, never mind whether it's Jack or not," she told him. "All we've been asked to do is keep them posted."  
"Who did they draw to try Erin for conspiracy?" Trevor asked, just to change the subject. Danielle shook her head.

"They haven't, yet," she said. "I heard she talked Kelly into representing her, just to give her something to do."  
Trevor shook his head, disgusted. "The two of them deserve each other, honestly," he muttered sarcastically. "I heard the prosecution's coming close to resting in this trial."

"That's what Michael Cutter told me," said Danielle. They made their way past security and towards their destination. "It's been long enough. I should think they've managed to prove their case."  
Court had already begun when they stepped in, so they fell silent as they filed towards a place near the back so that they wouldn't be much of a disturbance. Rebecca was there, sitting directly behind where Michael and Connie were, eyes forward.

"She told me she'd be here," Danielle said in an undertone to Trevor. "She testified in Judge Ross's courtroom yesterday."  
"You were there?" Trevor asked, and she nodded.

"I couldn't very well leave her there on her own," she said. "Even with ADA Novak there, it would have still been awkward."  
"I haven't seen any of the other girls around here lately," Trevor remarked, and Danielle shook her head, smirking.

"Becky's birthday is coming up soon," she said. "That might explain a lot."  
"How old is she, anyway?"  
"She'll be twenty-five," said Danielle, and then, "Hard to believe, isn't it?"  
"I haven't known Jack nearly as long as you have, Danielle, it's not really that surprising to me."

"Of course not."

Silence. There was a brief round of questioning by the attorney who had taken Erin's place, and then silence. Elizabeth looked towards the table where the prosecution was.

"The people rest their case, Your Honor," said Michael, getting to his feet. "We have nothing more to present."  
The defense had technically rested the day before, but had been permitted to question this witness anyway. Now all that was left were closing arguments. Michael glanced towards Connie as he sat, and she got to her feet, looking towards Elizabeth, who nodded.

Danielle looked over at Trevor. "One down, two to go," she said.

* * *

The entire Special Victims Unit had shown up for court that day. Taylor Galinet's trial had not been going as long as his sister's, but already, both defense and prosecution were coming to a close. Casey had the day before, and now, Neil Gorton was.

Closing arguments had always made Casey nervous, which was why she was glad that her unit was there. It helped, somewhat. There had been some kind of ongoing pissing match between Gorton and Judge Ross, not that anyone would be able to tell if they weren't looking for it. But Casey had been, if only because she'd heard the rumors, in case it needed to be suggested that Judge Ross take herself off the case. But there had been no need.

"The defense has tried to tell you that his client is guiltless," said Casey, her voice barely registering in her own ears. "But the people have presented to you evidence proving otherwise. An address book, highlighted with the names of people meant to be killed, people that had been killed, and one other name. Testimony of various people that have known and worked with the defendant over the years, and even the testimony of his victim."

She trailed off, to make sure the jury was actually listening, because she knew that they had been getting bored lately, and she couldn't really blame them. Once she was sure that they were listening, she went on.

"The defense paints a good picture," she said. "They've raised good questions. What if the evidence was planted? I ask you to trust me when I tell you that the police did not plant that evidence. They had no reason to; it was right there in front of them, in plain view. What if this is some vendetta by the district attorney's office to railroad an innocent party?" She trailed off again and shook her head.

"Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, the truth is that the District Attorney's office takes care of their own. But this is not a vendetta. It is evidence, cold hard facts, the result of a police investigation into a crime. That is why we're here. Because the defendant has committed a crime. I ask you to find it in yourselves to find him guilty, not only because of what you have seen here, but because he is."  
Silence. Neil had given his closing arguments already, because Casey had consented to let his be presented first. She looked towards Jamie, who nodded, and then court was over. The jury was sent to a room to debate over the case and decide on a verdict. It was up to them now, how long it would take. Guilty or innocent, Taylor Galinet's fate rested on the shoulders of five men and seven women.

"You did a good job, counselor," said Elliot, as he and Olivia made his way towards Casey while everyone else filed out. She offered up a half-hearted smile.

"Rebecca McCoy was in Judge Donnelly's courtroom today," she said. "Let's just hope I have some good news for her when this is over."  
"EADA Fellowes told me that she was tapped to try Erin Fallon," said Olivia, "And closing arguments were read in Judge Donnelly's court today."  
Casey nodded, and gathered her things. "That's good. Hopefully this will all be over by the time Jack and Anna get back from wherever it was that they went."  
Elliot frowned slightly. "I'm almost surprised they left," he remarked. "Does Rebecca even know they're gone?"  
Casey nodded. "Danielle Melnick told me that she does, but she didn't want to go with them," she said, and shrugged. "Hopefully we'll have good news for them, too."  
"How's Anna doing, anyway?" Olivia asked, and Casey shook her head, amused.

"Oh, she's fine, now that the whole mess between the little defense and prosecution group has been sorted out," she said. "I think it might be part of why she and Jack left, but Rebecca and Danielle are the only ones…"  
A popping sound cut into the conversation; they exchanged glances for a split second before running into the main hallway, where they found Jamie falling backwards, having barely managed to catch Neil, who had quite obviously been hit.

The stricken look on her face told them everything they needed to know. Elliot and Olivia both drew their guns and motioned to other cops they knew nearby to do the same, before taking off to put the courthouse under lockdown.


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N: Two updates in one day! Oh, and I have no idea how old Neil and Jamie's daughter actually is, so this is just a guess, having assumed a few things for AU purposes. In any case, carry on. **

* * *

Katie Gorton was a nervous wreck, and that was putting it lightly. She'd been pacing the length of the waiting room, all fifteen years of her, because her mother was talking to the doctors, and she hadn't heard much of anything, other than what Lorena Southerlyn had told her after sliding into her high school's parking lot with Destiny Carmichael to pick her up, on Jamie's request. 

"How in the hell does anyone get a gun into a courthouse nowadays, anyway?" she demanded, furiously, because she knew if she let the anger drop, it would give way to tears. Lorena and Destiny exchanged glances.

"Don't know, kid," said Destiny, looking at her watch. She would be on call in twenty minutes, but had already been dressed for work when the call had come from the courthouse. "Everything's going to be fine."  
"Then why hasn't Mom come back in here yet?" Katie had stopped in her tracks, briefly, but now she continued pacing. "If everything was fine, she'd have been back here already."  
"Not necessarily," said Lorena, "I mean, they could have a lot of stuff to tell her. Your mom went to law school, not med school?"  
Katie rounded on her. "So what?" she asked sarcastically. "That doesn't mean she doesn't know what they're talking about." She trailed off and shook her head. "This is crap. First Mr. McCoy and now Dad. What the hell is going on around this place?"

Her confusion wasn't altogether that surprising. Rebecca came sliding into the waiting room, pale-faced and demanding many of the same things Katie had demanded to know on her own way to the hospital. A few minutes after Rebecca came, Trevor and Danielle appeared.

"Do we know anything?" Danielle asked at once, but Lorena shook her head.

"Jamie hasn't been back yet, she was talking to the doctors already when we got here," she said. "We're still waiting."  
"She didn't even see it coming," said Trevor, shaking his head. "Novak's still down at the courthouse. Detective Benson and Detective Stabler managed to get it under lockdown fairly quickly, but we think the shooter managed to get out before all the exits were sealed."

Katie swore fluently under her breath, causing everyone there to stare at her. She glared back at them and flopped down into the chair closest to where she'd stopped pacing.

"What?" she demanded. "I'm not allowed to be pissed off about this mess?"  
No one said anything. If anyone, Katie definitely had the right to be pissed. Someone had tried to kill her mother and had nearly succeeded in killing her father. There was a lot to be angry about.

The doors to the waiting room flipped open suddenly and everyone looked up, anxiously as Jamie walked in and walked straight over to Katie, hugging her tightly before looking towards everyone else.

"He'll be fine," she said, relief quite obvious in her voice. "Did the police…?"  
Danielle shook her head. "They locked the place down as fast as they could but they think whoever it was slipped out."  
Jamie swore, much the same way Katie had, only no one stared at her for it. "The jury's still out?" she asked, and Trevor nodded.

"We've asked the court officers to call us when they've reached a verdict, but I suppose it can wait to be read until Neil's awake again," he said, "If that's all right with you."  
Jamie nodded. "Yeah, that's fine," she said. "I just can't believe this happened, you'd have thought it'd happen during the middle of the trial, not the end…"  
"I'm just glad Jack and Anna weren't here to see this," said Danielle, shaking her head again. "I don't think it would've done either one of them much good, not that it's done anyone else any good, either."  
Jamie offered up a faint, half-hearted smile, still holding onto her only child. "Guess I should have listened when Neil told me I was getting in over my head."  
"Um, yeah," said Katie, "Bit late for that now, isn't it?"

Silence. Jamie looked down at her, but said nothing about it and instead hugged her again.

"Don't worry about it anymore, sweetheart," she said. "Your father should be awake soon."

* * *

They had gone to the Windy City. The funny thing about this, Anna thought, was that it didn't really seem all that windy to her. Granted, it was colder than New York was, but that was what her coat was for. She tugged it closer around her and walked after Jack, who seemed to know exactly where he was going. 

"We're not lost, are we?" she asked, anyway, but Jack shook his head, just like she'd expected.

"No," he said. "No, I know where I'm going. I just…haven't been there in a while."  
She wondered what he was talking about and why they were walking, though she knew better than to say anything, more for fear of him shutting down on her again than anything else.

"Are you all right?" Jack asked, startling her out of her thoughts. "I'm sorry, I should have just asked Emily if we might have used her car, I didn't even think about it."  
"I'm fine," said Anna, in such a way that made him believe it, even though he doubted she was really speaking the truth. "I don't mind walking. I'd like to be able to see my feet after this baby's born, y'know."  
A faint, affectionate smile crossed his face. "You do realize you could be wearing anything in the world right now, and it wouldn't make a difference to me?"  
"I'm sure," said Anna, amused. "But really, Jack, I'm fine. I don't mind the walking, honestly."  
He sighed. "Well, if it starts to bother you, tell me, and we'll catch a cab or something on the way back. Wouldn't want you to freeze out here."

"I'm not cold," said Anna, and wasn't. "Where exactly are we going?"  
Jack stopped in his tracks and turned to look at her. "Would it bother you if I told you we were going to visit someone?"  
"No," said Anna, somewhat confused, "Why would it bother me?"  
He sighed, and reached for her hand, tugging her gently so that she was walking beside him rather than behind him.

"Because we'll have to go to a cemetery to do it," he said, slowly, as if he weren't sure that she would take too well to this news. She shrugged.

"All right, then," she said, "A cemetery it is. You're not going to scare me off like that."  
He knew that. And he also knew exactly how he was going to scare her off again, and had sworn up and down on that first night back in his apartment that they weren't going to, and again that morning, before they had left to come here, two days ago now.

They continued walking then, in silence, their hands linked and swinging in between them. When they reached their destination, he walked straight in, and down the left side of the path, and Anna followed, somehow knowing better than to say anything.

When he stopped, she did as well, somehow managing to keep from running into him. December in this place meant snow, and he reached out with a gloved hand to wipe it off of the headstone.

"I wish you could have met her in person," said Jack, without looking Anna in the eye, "But…well, let's just say life didn't give her what all she deserved."  
Anna looked towards the headstone. On it was a name that she had never heard nor seen before, that of one Bailey McCoy, maiden name McCullough, from what had been put there.

"Your mother?" she asked, and Jack nodded, mutely at first, and then he spoke.

"She died right before I made EADA," he said. "Thirteen years ago now. 1994. She'd have been 96 today."  
And suddenly the reason for his silence became quite evident. Anna reached for his hand again. "You didn't have to bring me here," she told him, quietly, but he shook his head at her.

"I wanted you to come," he admitted. "I wasn't sure I could do this on my own, as strange as it sounds. It's been a while since I've been home; you saw Emily when we showed up at her place."  
There was truth to this, and Anna knew it. Jack's younger sister had been more than a little bit surprised to see them standing on her doorstep, but had taken them both in without hesitation. Some ties were never really severed, she mused, and thought for a moment on her own sister in North Carolina.

"I used to swear up and down that I wasn't ever going to be like my father," said Jack, his voice breaking into her thoughts and causing her to look up at him. He looked back down at her and went on.

"I was going to have time for my family, I wasn't going to go chasing skirts, I wasn't going to drink too much…I wasn't going to hurt the ones that I loved," he said quietly. "It just wasn't going to happen. And you know…I didn't think it was, either, until you."  
She wondered what he meant by this, but before she could do or say anything, she noticed the faint evidence of tears on his face, but he looked away so quickly that she wasn't sure if she'd actually seen them.

"What do you mean, until me?" she asked, finally, tentatively, not letting go of his hand, and he went on without looking at her.

"I mean that you never really know what it is you have until it's gone," he said. "I never realized all the things I was doing wrong until you walked out, and I never saw it before, because I didn't want to believe that I was turning into him, but apparently, I was wrong."  
Anna knew little about his past, in all honesty. He and Emily had said little about it, and she hadn't asked, because she hadn't wanted to come off as nosy. Now, she waited, and when he said nothing she spoke.

"If you don't want to talk about it, you don't have to," she started, but he cut her off.

"Do you…know what we're having yet?" he asked, and Anna shook her head, somehow knowing what he was thinking.

"I don't," she said. "But we should be able to find out soon."


	21. Chapter 21

**A/N: I haven't given up on this one, but...it's winding down. There's going to be another chapter after this, I think, and then onto the next one, provided you all haven't gotten tired of Anna and everyone else yet...**

* * *

"So, what happens now?"  
Convictions had been handed down. Tara Galinet would spend the rest of her life in prison, while her brother would be serving a considerable amount of time in prison himself. The question had come from Rebecca, who lay flat on her back in Brittany Stone's apartment, staring up at the ceiling.

"Don't know," said Brittany. "Guess you don't have anything else to worry about, except for testifying against Erin."  
"Self-righteous bitch, like she wasn't going to get caught," Adrina muttered, acidly. "Talk about anger issues."  
Rebecca snorted. "Dad and Anna are coming home from Chicago tomorrow," she remarked. "Think Danielle told them already?"  
"Knowing her, probably," said Adrina, amused. "They'll be glad to hear it. Wouldn't be surprised if they called."  
As if on cue, the phone rang, and she smirked. "Well, speak of the devil," she said, looking at the idea. "It says, 'McCoy, John. You wanna answer?"  
"Wouldn't let him hear you calling him that if I were you," said Rebecca, but took the phone. "I'll be back."

She disappeared, into the kitchen, somehow knowing that Brittany and Adrina were rolling their eyes behind her, and pressed the talk button. "Hello?"  
"Becky, that you?" Jack's voice came over the line, faint, because he was on a cell phone, but it was still there.

"Yeah, it's me. Danielle tell you about the convictions?" Rebecca replied, leaning back against the counter.

"She did. Says she doesn't know where it's going to go from here. You're all right with everything, though?"  
"I'm fine with it. Better than I was when it first started anyway. How'd you know I was at Brittany's?"  
"Danielle's been talking to Ben; he says you and Brittany and Adrina have been hanging out a lot lately," said Jack, almost amused by this. "You'll tell them Anna and I say hello, won't you?"  
"Yeah, I'll tell them. You guys still planning on heading back tomorrow, or is Aunt Emily threatening to keep you there for the next ten years?"

"She's threatening, but she keeps laughing, so neither of us are taking her very seriously. I think she intends to come out here and visit sometime before the baby is born…"

"That's cool."

It was almost funny, Rebecca thought, that after years of wishing for a sibling, now that she was grown, she was actually going to happen. She thought briefly on an incident from when she and Brittany were ten, and decided she didn't want to think about it any longer than that moment.

"How is everyone out there? Any word from Jamie?" Jack's voice broke into her thoughts again and she nodded, before remembering that he couldn't see her.

"Yeah. She says Neil's doing fine, and he's probably going to be discharged this afternoon…Erin's trial's nowhere near starting, and she's fighting the cops on her arrest, whatever that means, so…"  
"You aren't going to have to testify against her, are you?"  
"Amanda says probably, but she's trying to find a way to get me out of it. I don't really care if I have to, though."  
On the other side of the line, Jack held the phone away from his ear for a moment and stared at it. Something had changed, he thought, and whether it was for better or for worse, he had no way of knowing. But it certainly seemed as if it wasn't the worst thing in the world.

"And to think, before all this, you'd have never set foot in a courtroom of your own free will," he said, after a moment, and Rebecca bit her lip to keep from laughing.

"Yeah, well…things change," she said. "I'm just glad this is all starting to wind down. Maybe we can get back to normal, you know?"  
In the other room, she could hear the television, and then Brittany's voice. "You are freaking kidding me. Ha! That ought to give him something to chew on."  
"Hold on a minute, Dad," said Rebecca, and then, to Brittany. "Hey! What're you yelling about in there?"  
"Branch just announced his retirement," Brittany said loudly, so that her voice would reach into the kitchen. "Just in time for elections. Talk about coincidence."  
Rebecca's eyebrows raised at this, and she shook her head, amused. "You might have a new boss when you get back, Daddy," she remarked. "Branch just announced that he's retiring."  
Jack laughed. "Yeah, I heard," he said. "I've already had a phone call from him. He wants me to take the run. What do you think?"  
"I think you're nuts," Rebecca told him, "But I'll be right behind you if you do."

* * *

They sat in Danielle's office. It was almost funny, because before this, the lines between defense and prosecution had always been clearly defined, but now they were definitely blurred. No one saw any difference anymore.

"…and one of you better be there to let me in my office, because I left my keys there when I left…" Anna trailed off for a moment, and then went on. "Is it just me or did we cut off again?"  
"No, we're here," said Danielle, "And I'm sure someone will be there. You've heard the news about Arthur Branch, then?"  
"Yes," said Anna. "Jack tells me he means to take the run, can't say I'm surprised, but Dr. Carmichael's probably going to kill him for it. I still can't believe everything's already ending."  
"You should be grateful," Trevor said dryly. "It's been months now. You can't tell me you wanted this to carry on forever."  
"Well, no, but a fifteen minute jury on Tara, and then only two hours on her brother? That's got to be some kind of record," came the reply.

"Yes, that's what Judge Donnelly and Judge Ross had to say. I don't think they've ever seen verdicts that fast either," said Amanda. "Which, by the way, our new EADA's quite the prosecutor."  
"I should think it was only a matter of presenting evidence," said Mike, shaking his head at her, "I had nothing to do with it. She hung herself."  
"Of course she did," said Anna. "You all almost make me miss New York, you know that?"  
"What, and you didn't already miss us before?" Trevor asked. "I'm hurt, Anna. I thought you liked being with us."  
"I do," said Anna, "But it's nice to have a break every now and then…have any of you heard from Rebecca?"  
"Earlier on; she said Jack called her," Danielle replied. "Now, you two are definitely coming home tomorrow, right?"  
"Yes, unless Emily thinks of some way to keep us here…she says she's going to come visit at some point, so that should be nice…" Anna trailed off and sighed. "What a year."  
"Has it already been so long?" Trevor asked, startled, and then, "No, it's not September yet, it's only been a few months, then."  
"That's what I meant," said Anna, distractedly, and then, "What's going to happen to Erin now?"

"Oh, she's going to trial, whether she likes it or not," said Amanda. "She's too stubborn to plead out. I'm just hoping her lawyer talks her into it, because I can't stand to look at her for another couple of months."  
Silence and then suddenly, all of them laughed. "Well, then," said Danielle, "I guess we'll just have to wait and see with that. In any case, with things winding down, do you think you'll take any time off?"  
"Are you kidding me?" Anna asked, half-seriously. "I'm having this baby in the courtroom, didn't I tell you?"  
"I should think Jack would have some objections to that theory," said Mike dryly. "Though, I wouldn't be surprised."  
"Neither would I," said Trevor, and then, "You know, I'm still the senior partner, and I can still tell you to take time off."  
"I should love to see you try it," said Anna, and then, "I actually have to go and pack so we can actually get to the airport on time tomorrow, so…I shall talk to you all then. Try not to do anything stupid while I'm gone, please."

"Anything you want us to pass along to anyone else?" Connie asked, finally looking up from the paperwork she'd been trying to finish and breaking into the conversation.

"I was wondering where you were," said Anna, "But yes, if you'd tell our dear judges that I do say hello, and that Jack does, too…oh, quit, you know you do…that'd be great."  
"We'll do that," said Trevor, "You just try not to get yourself killed walking through the airport."  
"That'll earn you no coffee for the first week I'm back, you know," said Anna, giving the phone a mock-annoyed look. "Never mind. I'll probably forget by the time I get back; I hate to fly."  
"Well, you'd best go pack, then, and take your mind off things," said Danielle, "We'll talk to you tomorrow."

* * *

As it was, by the time the next day rolled around, Mike and Amanda had both had it up to here with Erin and her refusal to talk to anyone. So they had made the journey out to Rikers Island, and were sitting across from her.

"Well, if it isn't the District Attorney's dream team," she said, sarcastically. "Let me guess. One of the two McCoys sent you here to tell me something."  
"We sent ourselves," Mike said evenly. "You would do well to listen to us, whether or not your lawyer is here, because there's nothing saying that you have to speak to us."  
Erin rolled her eyes. "You know, I'm a lawyer myself," she said, "Technically, I don't need another attorney in my ear, telling me what to say and what to do. So talk."  
"The attitude is not going to help you," said Amanda. "The police have found witnesses. People who have seen you talking to Tara Galinet and her brother. People who saw you staking out Jack McCoy's place, and Anna Flynn's."

"That doesn't mean anything."

"Like hell it doesn't," said Mike, "That alone is enough to convict you, and the fact that you have a gun registered in your name…that's more than enough."

"Nothing happened to him, or to his little girlfriend. I hear she finally told him that he knocked her up. Took her long enough."  
"That's not any of your concern," said Amanda. "What we came here to tell you, Ms. Fallon, is that if you insist on dragging yourself through a trial, then you will most likely be convicted. You will never practice law again, anywhere. We can make sure of that."

"Don't you dare sit there and threaten me, Ms. Fellowes. All the evidence the police have is circumstantial at best, and you know it. You have no case."  
"Rebecca McCoy spent enough time with you when you were married to her father, I'm quite sure that she's perfectly capable of identifying your voice, even if she couldn't see anything," said Mike. "We're offering you the charges of conspiracy to commit murder, and Man One, because we know you had something to do with at least one of the murders that Ms. Galinet committed. Twelve and a half to fifteen on the second charge, three to six on the first."  
"Concurrently, if you cooperate with us," said Amanda. "If you don't, then the deal's off the table, but believe me when I say this is the lowest that we're willing to go."  
"And if I tell you no?"  
"You'll make your life a living hell, because you will be dealing with us for the next few months, as you're already aware of," said Mike. "I'm sure you'd rather avoid seeing us for a while, but if not, that can be arranged."  
Silence. Erin appeared to be mulling this over, and finally she scowled. "You're only doing this to protect them. Jack, and Rebecca, and Anna. That's the only reason why you came here, isn't it?"  
"They don't need to be pushed through any more than they already have been," said Amanda, flatly. "And you know it."  
"You don't know what I know," Erin snapped, and then, "Fine. I'll take your so-called plea offer. Just send the paperwork to my lawyer; I'm sure you know who she is."  
They did, too. Danielle had taken the case, out of pity, more than anything else, and had been one of the driving forces in getting Erin to accept the plea she'd finally given into.

Mike and Amanda rose to their feet and motioned to one of the guards.

"It looks like this is officially over," said Mike. "You'll tell everything that you had a hand in, in Judge Donnelly's courtroom, as part of the plea, is that understood?"

"Whatever, "said Erin. "Just leave."  
They did.

"I didn't expect it to be so easy," said Amanda, as they made their way back into Manhattan. Mike sighed.

"Neither did I. But I guess she knows that it would have been worse for her if we'd actually taken her to trial."  
"Now she decides to get some sense."  
"Well, at least we have good news for Jack and Anna."


	22. Epilogue

**A/N: And here's the end of this one. For the record, I really do already have another idea for the next story, so...knowing me, it'll probably up soon. However, National Novel Writing Month starts tonight at midnight, so updates are probably going to be far between. In any case, I shall leave you to read. **

* * *

"This is almost sad."

The remark came from Brittany, who'd organized the so-called gathering herself, because none of them wanted to wait with the actual lawyers to find out what was going to happen. Instead, the lot of them found themselves sitting in front of the television in her apartment, waiting to see for themselves.

"Look who's talking," said Rebecca, from the kitchen, "You're the one that set this thing up, and you're calling it sad?"

"Well, yeah, I mean, we could be out doing something. It's a freaking Friday. But no, we're all perfectly content to sit around and see if Campbell's gonna be our new District Attorney…"

"I will change my residency from this city if that idiot is our new DA," said Adrina, seriously. "I mean it. I couldn't stand to look at him if he made the office."

"Considering the fact that he's already insufferable enough as it is; Lorena, I don't see how you put up with him," said Destiny. "Are they still planning on calling over here or not?"  
"Yeah, they are. I heard they were waiting out the elections at that one place in the Bronx my dad's always going to…"

They'd split up, the two groups, under the condition that when the results came in, one would call the other, and they'd listen together via speakerphone from then. The idea had been more Anna's and Danielle's than it had been anyone else's, but they had gone along with it, willingly. It almost made things easier.

"Y'know, this whole thing kinda makes me wanna drop out of law school, except for the fact that my parents would have my head," said Adrina, "Any thoughts on that?"

"Don't quit your day job, Kincaid," said Lorena, "Trust me, you're gonna need it."

Silence, and then laughter. Rebecca emerged from the kitchen toting various cans on a tray and set them down on the coffee table.

"Various sodas," she said, "Whatever you want, it's probably there, and if you want something different, you can get it yourself."

"Love you, too, Becky," said Brittany, but took one of the cans anyway, and popped it open. "This is kinda like waiting to see who's gonna win the Miss America pageant, you know?"

The others stared at her. Finally, Adrina leaned back in her position, laughing. "You actually watch that?" she said.

"I had nothing better to do, trust me. Wouldn't have been caught dead doing it otherwise," said Brittany. "Wish they'd hurry up and close the voting precincts already. It's been long enough, hasn't it?"

"They don't close until eight, and we're probably not going to hear anything till around midnight," said Lorena, "We're in for a long wait."

"Well," said Destiny, "If even the lot of us can't stand to wait, I'd love to see how they're doing over in the Bronx."

"Four hours and counting," said Adrina, after a two minute silence in which it turned eight o'clock. "Here's to hoping."

* * *

By midnight, those who'd waited in the Bronx had considerably diminished in number: the only ones still present were Jack and Anna, and Mike Cutter and Amanda Fellowes, none of them having any responsibilities in court later on.

"I still don't think we had enough time to make a proper run for office; the least Arthur could have done was give us a heads up," Amanda said dryly. Two months had already passed since the convictions, and Erin pleading out, but it seemed a lot shorter.

"I don't think it would have done much good; the people are going to vote for who they want, but if they stick Lucas Campbell in as our District Attorney, I think I should have to resign," said Mike. "Couldn't stand the man before, and I doubt I'll be able to stand him now."

"You think any of the girls are still awake, or do you think they got bored enough to fall asleep?" Anna asked, abruptly changing the subject.

"They're probably still awake; knowing them they've probably downed considerable amounts of caffeine," said Jack. "I don't know what you lot are so worked up over, it doesn't particularly matter to me."

"Sure it doesn't," said Amanda, "Not when you've got Branch, and Nora Lewin, and Adam Schiff backing you, not to mention City Hall…"

"That has nothing to do with anything," said Jack, "Just luck. That's all."

"Sure it is," said Anna, shaking her head at him. "Results should be coming in soon. I don't think I've ever seen a city more concerned with who their District Attorney is than this place."  
"Well, it is an awfully big city," said Mike, "Of course they're going to care; they're going to want someone who represents them, even if only one of five counties that make up the city."

"Hopefully that's what they'll get," said Amanda, taking a sip from the drink in front of her. "I gotta tell you, though, Jack, I've got my fingers crossed."

"I think we all do," he replied, mildly, "Anna, you've got your phone?"

"Yeah. We might as well call them now."

But before Anna could draw her phone all the way out of her pocket, it rang. She pulled it out, and looked at the caller ID, putting it on speakerphone before talking.

"You hear the results?" she asked, by way of greeting, though the answer was quite obvious from the shouting on the other side of the line. Rebecca spoke more loudly than she might have under normal circumstances as she replied.

"Yeah, we did!" she said, her voice echoing slightly across the table, to where Mike and Amanda were. "Congratulations, Daddy!"  
"Thanks, sweetheart," said Jack, who'd just heard himself, via Amanda, who'd heard first through the television playing faintly behind them, and had promptly declared another round on her. "You staying in Manhattan tonight?"  
"Yeah, you going to the island?"  
"I should hope so," said Anna, as laughter came from the other side of the table. "We'll see you in the morning?"  
"You'll see all of us in the morning," said Amanda, looking at her watch and making a face. "I hate to tell you single people this, but I have kids at home, and a babysitter, who's gonna kill me if I'm too late again."  
She rose to her feet and opened her wallet, leaving money on the table. "I shall see you at work, then, Mr. McCoy," she said, smirking in Jack's direction. He rolled his eyes at her.

"At work, then, Ms. Fellowes," he said, and then, "You, too, Mr. Cutter."  
Taking this as a cue, Mike rose to his feet and nodded. "In the morning, then," he said. "Good night."  
And with that, he was gone.

"Odds that he and Amanda are going to the same place?" Anna asked, as she and Jack followed suit. He sighed.

"I prefer not to speculate," he said, mock-seriously, as they left. "It'll come out in due time, if it's what I think it is."  
"Don't tell me you're going to be one of those District Attorneys that enforces the unwritten rules of fraternization." They stepped outside, into the cold, and Anna gave Jack a sideways look as she went on. "I should have to protest it if you were."  
He laughed, and shook his head. "I would think that with my track record, everyone would have to protest it."  
"Those things can change."  
"True. Danielle told me she thinks this will end up being my longest running relationship."  
"And what do you think?"  
At this, Jack stopped in his tracks, causing Anna to nearly trip over him. She caught herself just in time and looked at him with raised eyebrows. "What was that for?"  
"This." His hand had been in his pocket ever since they'd stepped out, and now he drew it out, opening it to reveal a small box. Anna stared.

"This, being…?" she asked, slowly, and found herself looking down at him suddenly, instead of up.

"I should think I wouldn't be surprised if you were to laugh at me for this," he said, "But I think Danielle is right, and I don't think that I'd be able to handle losing you again."  
Somewhat startled, Anna shifted on her feet before speaking. "So…what are you saying?"  
It was now or never. Jack wondered briefly why he felt more nervous this time than he had the other two times, and decided that he didn't want to think about it as he replied.

"Anna, will you marry me?"


End file.
